


Force of Nature

by goodluckgettingtosleep



Series: Force of Nature [1]
Category: Julie and The Phantoms (TV 2020)
Genre: (not between Luke and Reggie), Alternate Universe - Famous, Angst and Hurt/Comfort, Bisexual Reggie Peters (Julie and The Phantoms), Boys Kissing, Concerts, Country!Reggie, Disney World & Disneyland, Everyone Is Famous, Falling In Love, Famous Sunset Curve, Five Stages of Grief, Fluff and Angst, Forgiveness, Getting Together, Heartbreak, Idiots in Love, Implied/Referenced Cheating, M/M, Mentioned Reggie Peters/Kayla, Music, Musicians, Pansexual Luke Patterson (Julie and The Phantoms), Past Alex Mercer/Luke Patterson (Julie and The Phantoms), Past Julie Molina/Luke Patterson - Freeform, Pining, Reggie is a country star, Sharing a Bed, Slow Burn, Songwriting, Sort Of, Strangers to Lovers, Sunset Curve (Julie and The Phantoms), Sunset Curve is only Luke & Alex & Bobby, it's 2002, punk!luke
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-06
Updated: 2021-02-14
Packaged: 2021-03-18 18:15:20
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 10
Words: 48,992
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29247897
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/goodluckgettingtosleep/pseuds/goodluckgettingtosleep
Summary: Luke meets Reggie in a toilet stall at an award show when he's just trying to hide from everyone. He's the frontman of famous pop punk band Sunset Curve, and Reggie is an international country star. Something shifts in his life when he asks Reggie to sneak out of the award show together to attend an underground punk rock gig instead. Luke doesn't believe in love at first sight, but Reggie sure as hell makes him question everything he's ever believed in before.
Relationships: Alex Mercer & Luke Patterson (Julie and The Phantoms), Julie Molina & Luke Patterson, Luke Patterson/Reggie Peters (Julie and The Phantoms), Reggie Peters & Willie (Julie and The Phantoms)
Series: Force of Nature [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2195697
Comments: 251
Kudos: 215





	1. September Night

**Author's Note:**

> I am so excited for this. It's my first multi chapter work for this fandom. That being said, you don't have to worry. I don't trust myself either, so I waited until I finished writing the whole thing before posting. Do you want the next chapter tomorrow or would you rather wait longer? Let me know in the comments. I think I'm probably my own biggest hype woman for this fic, so I hope you enjoy. xx
> 
> also, this first chapter is probably twice as long as the following ones. just makes sense that way. stay tuned.

Luke Patterson hates award shows. Well, okay, maybe saying that he hates them is a little bit dramatic, but to be fair, he just _is_ a little dramatic as a person, he can’t help it. It’s not that he doesn’t like receiving awards and being cheered on, especially when it’s awards that were voted for by their fans. But award shows simply tend to be less about the music and the fans and more about being seen, about self-presentation and putting on a show that puts you in a good light. Everyone pretends to be on their best behaviour, and if it’s not a fan voted award, it’s never really about the art, but about money and connections. And Luke detests that. His music has never been about the money, the fame, or the awards and prestige. For him, it has always been about connecting with people, about reaching parts of their souls that only music can reach, and about showing them parts of his music in return. And Luke loves the fact that his band has become big enough to even be invited to award shows, because it means that he can connect with more people, and gets to do what he loves most as a profession. He loves touring, loves talking to the people who love his music. He loves being in the studio, and he even loves doing the occasional interview where he can talk about his music. But one look at the fancily dressed, pretentious people around him at this particular award show their manager Flynn forced them to attend, and Luke is about ready to commit a crime. The crime being, hiding in a toilet stall and smoking weed. So that’s what he does. 

He groans as he flops down onto the toilet seat and pulls a joint out of the pocket of his suit. He makes sure there aren’t any smoke detectors around, and then he lights it and takes a deep drag, feeling the tobacco burn more than the weed in his lungs. Leaning back, he closes his eyes as he keeps it in a little longer than necessary, before exhaling and sighing as he rubs a hand over his forehead. It’s going to be a very long night, he knows, and he’s sure they won’t even win an award, not when they are nominated in the same category as Green Day and blink-182, anyway. Not that Sunset Curve doesn’t match the success of either of those bands. They _are_ considered one of the pioneer bands of pop punk, after all. But Luke knows how these award shows go, and somehow Sunset Curve just seems less attractive to give awards to, apparently. 

There is a bang on the door of the toilet stall, and Luke nearly drops his joint as it opens and he is suddenly faced with the prettiest man he’s seen in a long time. And that means something, because Luke sees a lot of attractive people _all_ the time. He looks faintly familiar with his long, dark hair pulled up into a bun, the green eyes, and freckles on his nose, but Luke can’t tell where he’s seen him before. Surely he would remember someone quite so beautiful? The guy is dressed in a dark red suit jacket and black skinny trousers, his nails are painted in a matching shade of red, and Luke can’t help letting his eyes wander over his lanky form for maybe a few seconds longer than what’s considered appropriate. 

“Oh, I’m— I’m so sorry, I didn’t realise this one was occupied. The whole toilet is empty, and leave it to me to choose the one stall that isn’t,” he rambles, a few pink blotches appearing on his cheeks as he blushes. Luke chuckles. 

“Relax, man. I’m not using the toilet, see?” Luke tells him, pointing at his fully dressed bottom half. 

The guy blushes an impossibly deeper shade of red, and Luke feels the sudden urge to pinch one of his cheeks. 

“Oh! Right. I see,” he says, his eyes finally finding the joint in Luke’s hand. There is a gleam in them when he does, and Luke smirks. 

“You wanna share?” he asks. He definitely does not have any objections to spending more time with the handsome, blushing stranger. His eyes widen, but then he nods, quickly taking a step into the small stall and closing the door behind him. Luke chuckles and hands him the joint, watching in awe as the man takes a deep drag and inhales, throwing his head back and closing his eyes. 

“Ugh, this is good,” he says when he exhales, handing it back. Luke chuckles again, gladly taking it back. 

“You look like you need it,” he comments, noticing the way the stranger is nervously fiddling with the seams of his suit jacket. 

“Yeah, I probably do, man. I actually came here to hide from this girl… she’s an upcoming singer, she’s really good, don’t get me wrong. But I kind of have a… I’m not interested right now, and I don’t think she wants to accept that.” 

Luke makes a face that he thinks is sympathetic and offers the joint back to the stranger. 

“Dude, she sounds like a dick.” 

The guy takes another deep drag and shakes his head. Luke watches his face as he inhales, and he’s a little transfixed by the way the dim fancy bathroom lighting paints the features of his face, soft, yet sharp in a way that enhances his cheekbones. He frowns, and even the creases on his forehead don’t make him any less handsome. 

“No, she’s just— you know what? No, you’re right. She is a bit of a dick.” 

Luke laughs as he takes the joint back. He meets the strangers eyes and realises that he still doesn’t even know his name, yet he’s already waxing poetic about his face in his head. 

“I’m Luke, bye the way,” he says. The stranger snorts. 

“Yeah, I know.” 

Luke looks at him quizzically. He’s used to people already knowing his name when he meets them, of course, but it seems like the stranger is, too. Only that Luke really doesn’t know who he is beyond the fact that he looks vaguely familiar. 

“Oh! I’m… I’m Reggie. Sorry. I shouldn’t have assumed…” Reggie blushes again, and it’s frankly quite delicious to watch. Luke is almost glad he didn’t know his name. 

“It’s fine, man. Been there, done that. If anything, I’m sorry I didn’t recognise you. I mean, I still don’t, to be honest. What kinda music do you make, then?” 

Reggie chuckles, his blotchy blush still covering his cheeks. Luke still wants to poke it. 

“Country, mostly. It’s what I’m known for anyway, but I’ve been branching out. I’m currently working on a punk album, actually.” 

Luke nods along, finishing off the joint and getting up from the toilet seat to throw it in. 

“That explains it, then. Can’t say I’m big on country. Sorry. I’m sure you’re like, really good, though.” 

Reggie shrugs, and Luke tries to ignore how close they are now that he stood up from the toilet seat. 

“I _shred_ on the banjo,” Reggie says, his face lighting up into a grin Luke recognises from himself. He’s pretty sure he looks like that too when he talks about his music. “And I can sing alright,” he adds. Luke laughs again. He really wants to hear Reggie’s music now, and somehow he feels like he’s not quite ready to let him out of his grasp just yet. 

“You wanna get out of here, man? I can think of a million places I’d rather be right now, and since you mentioned punk… we could hit a few clubs and see who’s playing.” Luke really doesn’t know why he suggests this when he’s known Reggie for all of five minutes and knows next to nothing about him. But he likes what he’s seen, and he really desperately wants to get out. He knows Flynn is absolutely going to kill him, but he doesn’t care all too much. He is the lead singer, for crying out loud. He can do what he wants. 

Reggie looks completely taken aback for a few moments, but then his face breaks into the brightest and best smile Luke has ever seen. 

“Okay. You know what? Fuck it. Let’s do it.” 

As it turns out, two well known musicians sneaking out the back door of an award show isn’t quite as easy as it sounds. They have to stop multiple times on their way out, people asking them where they’re headed to, and panicked stagehands making calls to their bosses when they pass them. 

“Reggie here just needs a breather, alright,” Luke tells a particularly worried looking staff member. “ _Nerves_.” 

Reggie shoots him a glare, but Luke can see the smirk pulling at the corner of his lips. So, because he can, Luke reaches out and takes his hand, dragging him along until they finally stumble out of a back entrance, the fresh night air hitting them in the face in an almost startling contrast to the stuffy air in the arena they just left. The area is locked off with a few tall fences, intended to keep the fans out rather than to keep the artists in, even though Luke does feel a bit like a caged animal. Reggie giggles behind him, and Luke turns around to see his flushed face in the dimly lit parking lot. Something is fluttering beneath his ribcage, and Luke is so surprised at the sensation that he gasps softly and raises an eyebrow. His hand is still linked with Reggie’s and he doesn’t really feel like letting go just yet, he finds. 

“Why is this thing we’re doing here completely legal, and yet it feels like it isn’t?” Reggie asks. Luke snorts. He’s not wrong. 

“It’s the cages of the show biz, _baby,”_ he says, emphasising the _baby_ for good measure. He’s not going to lie, he very much enjoys the effect he seems to have on Reggie by using the pet name, as well. The man avoids his eyes and flushes yet again a deeper shade of red. “Though it’s only half-legal. I still got some weed in my pockets.” 

Reggie snorts. “Of course you do.” 

Luke hums and looks around, scanning the fences to find the best spot to climb over. 

“Okay. Let’s get out of here and then hit the clubs downtown. I’m pumped for some _punk rock._ ” 

He drags Reggie over to a dumpster next to the fence and climbs up with a few swift movements before reaching down to help his new friend up as well. 

From there, it’s easy to climb the rest of the way over and jump down to the other side. Reggie stumbles a little as he lands, bumping into Luke, who reaches out to steady him with a hand on his shoulder. He smiles at him, meeting his eyes for a brief moment, before grabbing his hand again and dragging him towards the street. Reggie giggles again, and Luke gets a feeling that he doesn’t really do stupid things like ditching award shows to run away with a guy he just met all too often. Not that _Luke_ does _this_ particular thing often, but he’s known for being a little impulsive. He usually tends to do the things he feels like doing without thinking them through or considering the consequences beforehand. 

“This is the dumbest thing I’ve done since breaking into an indoors swimming pool in high school,” Reggie tells him. 

Luke snorts. “Well, aren’t you a wild one?” 

“This may come as a shock to you, Luke, but most country people I meet aren’t the craziest bunch. The beer and chicken fried they sing about tend to be the highlights of their weeks.” 

Luke drags Reggie through a row of trees and they finally reach the street. He turns to look at him, and the way his green eyes look in the yellow street lights almost take his breath away. Damnit. He hasn’t caught any feelings for a guy since breaking up with Alex, who plays drums in his band, and he thought he could keep it that way for a while. It’s just easier, in the public eye. But Reggie… if he already feels this intensely after knowing him for less than half an hour, he’s not sure he wants to know how he’ll feel at the end of the night. 

“Time to make some friends who are a bit more fun, then,” Luke says, grinning. He tries not to think about the fact that he’s still holding Reggie’s hand. He just likes holding his hand. Nothing wrong with it.

Reggie grins back at him, raising an eyebrow. 

“Like you?” 

Luke nods. “Like me. Come on.” He waves for a taxi, and a few minutes later they’re both sitting in the backseat of one on their way downtown. Luke let go of Reggie’s hand when they climbed into the back of the car, but he already misses the weight of it in his. 

“So, Reg. Tell me more about you.” 

Reggie snorts and looks over to him with a raised eyebrow. 

“Like what?” 

Luke shrugs. “We’re about to spend the night together and I literally don’t know anything about you,” he says innocently, but with just enough underlying innuendo, chuckling when Reggie blushes just the way he expected him to. 

“So that’s how you’re gonna play it, huh?” Reggie asks, quickly recovering and returning Luke’s suggestive smile. “Alright, _babe._ I’m Reggie Peters - can’t I really can’t remember the last time I had to say this to anyone who didn’t already know - Reggie is actually short for Reginald. Thanks, parents. I grew up in the midwest. Missouri, to be precise. I’m 24. I have a dog named _Hotdog_. The first instrument I learned to play was the bass guitar. I actually like punk rock more than country, but I wouldn’t want to miss my country either,” Reggie grins at him, and Luke feels that fluttering again. _Fucking hell._ He knows he’s staring, but he can’t help it. Reggie is… like a hidden gem, except Luke is the only one he’s been hidden from, apparently. A nudge to his shoulder shakes Luke out of his trance. “Now you,” Reggie says. Luke nods, thinking. 

“Tell me what you already know about me first.” 

Reggie sighs, and Luke swears he’s blushing again. He seems to do that rather a lot, really. 

“Well. You’re Luke Patterson. Lead singer and lead guitarist of Sunset Curve. You’ve been involved in writing every single Sunset song, if not writing it by yourself in the first place. You’re… also 24? I think. Pop punk wouldn’t be the same without you today.” 

Luke laughs and shoves Reggie’s shoulder. 

“That’s quite impressive, dude. Say, are you a fan?” 

Reggie snorts. “Yeah, you’re really making me rethink that.” 

Shrugging, Luke meets Reggie’s eyes. He knows he’s flirting and he’s really not subtle about it, but he also can’t help it. 

“I’ve been told I’m quite the charmer in real life,” he tells him. 

Reggie looks rather unimpressed, but the smile dancing around his lips gives him away. 

“Are you, then?” 

Luke hums. “Alright. Everything you said about me was true. I guess you’ll have to wait and see if you can figure out more.” 

Reggie hoots. “I do love a challenge,” he tells him, and Luke’s heart does a little flip in his chest. It’s a dangerous game he’s playing here, and he knows it. But it’s too much fun to drop, and he doesn’t know Reggie yet, but still he feels like he does, somehow. 

They sit in silence for a few minutes, but it’s not uncomfortable. Luke lets his thoughts drift, watching the street lights fly past him as he stares out of the window. He’s a little bit sorry for ditching his bandmates and undoubtedly causing Flynn a lot of stress, but really. They should have seen this coming. Luke is known for having a strong dislike for these types of events, and it’s not the first time he snuck out. He’s impulsive, and when he wants something, he goes for it. And apparently, tonight he wants to kidnap a hot country singer from an award show and drag him to a couple of trashy punk shows in downtown L.A.. Apparently, tonight he wants Reggie Peters. He looks over to the guy in question and his heart does a little leap again. It’s strange, because Luke is known for falling in love easily, but not quite so fast. Not that he’s in love. _Oh dear._ He knows he’s blushing over his own thoughts. He really needs to get a grip. 

They’re passing a thrift store now, and Luke impulsively tells the taxi driver to stop. He and Reggie are still in their fancy suits, and that doesn’t seem like proper attire to attend an underground punk rock show, does it? He pays the driver, pushes Reggie out of the car, and grabs his hand again just because he can, dragging him to the dimly lit store on the corner. Reggie doesn’t question him, and Luke sends him a grin over his shoulder that he immediately finds returned. He ignores the fluttering and pushes open the door to the store instead, jumping a little when a bell rings out. They’re the only customers in the shop, and Luke notices the lady behind the counter ogling them. She looks about middle aged, and she’s wearing a red, flowery dress, her hair put up in a bun. Luke ignores her stares and drags Reggie down the first aisle. 

“Probably a fan of yours,” he hisses, grinning. Reggie snorts. 

“She could be one of yours, too,” he says. Luke raises an eyebrow, letting go of Reggie’s hand to look through the shirts on the racks. 

Luke snorts. “Yeah, she looks just like your regular Sunset Curve fan.” 

Reggie shrugs. “Do I?” 

Laughing, Luke pulls out a Sunset Curve shirt he coincidentally finds just in the right moment and hands it to Reggie. 

“Now you will.” 

Snorting, Reggie clutches the shirt to his chest and Luke keeps browsing. Reggie does, too, and they’re silent for a little while, until Reggie laughs out loud and Luke spins around to find him grinning and holding up a shirt with his own name and face on it. 

“There goes all doubt I had left that you were really just a fan pretending to be famous so you could befriend me,” Luke jokes and catches the shirt when Reggie tosses it over. 

“You gonna wear it?” 

Grinning, Luke slings the shirt over his shoulder. 

“Hell, yeah.” 

About twenty minutes later, they are both dressed in tight black jeans, each other’s merch shirts, Luke in a light blue, ripped denim jacket and Reggie in a black leather jacket that suits him exceptionally well. The lady at the counter can barely contain her excitement anymore as they approach. Luke gently nudges Reggie in the side. As she puts their items into her register, she keeps eying them, and Luke grins. He expects her to ask Reggie for an autograph any moment, but then she surprises him and says, 

“Excuse me, I have to ask. You’re Luke from Sunset Curve, right?” 

Reggie laughs and pokes him in the side, and Luke is sure he visibly splutters. 

“He is,” Reggie tells her, still giggling. The lady scans him, and then raises an eyebrow.

“Oh my, and you’re Reggie Peters,” she says, a hand coming up to her mouth. It seems that she didn’t even notice him before, and Luke wonders how that is possible when all he can do is stare at the man ever since he met him in that toilet stall. 

“He is,” Luke says, shaking himself out of his train of thought. 

“I didn’t know you were friends.” She gestures between them. “This is an interesting combination, if I’m allowed to say that. My daughter is a huge fan of your band, Luke. Mr Patterson? I’m sorry, she’s talking about _Luke_ all day, so I suppose that’s what my mind jumps to first upon seeing you. She’s not going to believe this.” 

Luke smiles. He’s glad he judged her correctly, after all. Of course her daughter would be his fan. 

“Luke is fine. Better even. Mr Patterson is my dad.” 

The lady nods and holds out a notepad. 

“You think you could sign this for her? I suppose it’s a bit lame, since it’s just a piece of paper, but it’ll still be your autograph and I think she’s going to love it,” she says. Luke nods and takes it. 

“What’s her name?” 

“Lucy!” 

Luke smiles and writes a quick note for Lucy, signing it and drawing heart beneath, before handing it back. 

_Lucy. Your mom tells me you’re a really cool dude, and you have to be if you like Sunset Curve. Always keep going, and we’ll be right there with you every step of the way. Love and stuff, Luke_

When he looks back up, he notices Reggie sneaking a peek at the note as well, reading it, and then proceeding to give him the best smile Luke has ever seen. It nearly makes him blush a little bit. 

“Love and stuff?” he mouths, and Luke pokes him in the side. 

“This is so sweet, Luke! Thank you. She’s going to be over the moon.” She takes the piece of paper from the notepad and then hands an empty one to Reggie. 

“Would _you_ sign this for _me_ , then?” she asks with a smile that can almost be considered flirty. Luke suppresses a snort. 

“Sure,” Reggie says, “To?” 

“Oh, it’s Jodie.” 

Reggie hums as he writes down a few words before signing the sheet with a swift, studied move of his wrist. Jodie gives him some more heart eyes she doesn’t deserve to give him simply by the fact that she didn’t even notice him before he replied in Luke’s stead, but Reggie doesn’t blush, and Luke takes much more satisfaction in the fact than he probably should. Reggie blushes a lot around _him_ , is all. Smiling happily to himself, he pays for their clothes, hands Jodie their discarded suits as donation, which she almost has a breakdown over when she realises they are expensive designer brands, and then Luke takes Reggie’s hand again because he _can_ . He doesn’t care what Jodie thinks, and drags him out of the shop and down the street towards a club called _The Smell_. 

“I guess we both won that bet we didn’t actually make,” Reggie says, and _intertwines_ their fingers. 

Luke hums and glances at their joint hands, grinning stupidly when he looks back up to meet Reggie’s unfairly green eyes. 

“I didn’t count on the _daughter!_ It’s always the daughters.” 

Reggie laughs. “Yeah, unfortunately, it’s mostly the _moms_ for me, and only the occasional daughter. Or son,” he adds, almost like an afterthought. Luke eyes him curiously. 

“You rocking both boats, then?” he asks. He just needs to know for sure before he manages to go ahead and fall for a straight guy. Not that he’s falling for anyone, least of all some country singer he only met about two hours ago. Reggie shrugs. 

“Bi is fly, man.” His confidence lasts for all about two seconds before it’s replaced by a blush. “But I’m not actually… I mean, I _am_. I just never… I’ve never been with anyone to actually _prove…_ it. And I also never told anyone before. Why did I…? You… Oh my god, I’m so sorry,” Reggie stammers and tries to let go of Luke’s hand, but Luke doesn’t let him. He holds on tighter and stops Reggie in his tracks. 

“Chill, man,” he says, smiling reassuringly. “Bi _is_ fly. You don’t have to have been with a dude to prove anything either. And I’m honoured you told me.” 

Reggie’s frown eases back into a small smile, but he still looks a little nervous and Luke doesn’t like that. 

“Look. I know how you feel,” he tells him. 

Reggie raises an eyebrow. “You do?” 

Nodding, Luke starts walking again, pulling Reggie along by their joined hands. 

“Yeah. I dated Alex for two years. Up until last year. But you wouldn’t know that, because I didn’t want it to affect the way our music is perceived. It didn’t go well. Hiding something so important about yourself… it sucks, man.” 

This time Reggie is the one who stops them, eyes wide. 

“Alex Mercer?” he asks, voice high pitched. “From your band?” 

Luke chuckles and uses his free hand to scratch at the back of his head in a bit of a flustered motion. 

“That’s the one.” 

Luke gets a feeling that Reggie isn’t the fastest person on the uptake. But it just makes him all the more endearing. 

“So, you’re…” 

Luke shrugs, pulling Reggie along again. 

“I just like _people_. I don’t care what gender they are.” 

There’s a smile growing on Reggie’s face, and Luke quickly looks ahead before his cursed fluttering can make its grand return. 

“I like that,” Reggie says. 

Luke chuckles, and he gets that itch, knowing he’s about to say something he shouldn’t say, but he’ll do it anyway because he’s Luke Patterson and he has no impulse control. 

“Well. If you do want to prove something to yourself… I’ve been told I’m a rather good kisser.” He says it quietly, shyly almost, and the casual nonchalance he aimed for is nowhere to be found. 

“What?” Reggie squeaks. Luke just looks at him and shrugs, trying to keep the blush from his face. “You want to kiss me?” 

Reggie’s high pitched voice is enough to make Luke recover from his fleeting embarrassment at his own suggestion. 

“I wouldn’t be opposed to it.”

Reggie keeps staring at him. 

“And that wouldn’t be weird and awkward, how?” he asks incredulously. “I don’t want a pity kiss.” 

Luke scoffs. As if any kiss he shares with Reggie Peters could ever be a pity kiss. 

“Pity kiss, alright.” 

Luke Patterson has no impulse control. And that’s why he promptly drags Reggie into a dark alley and gently pushes him against a wall. Reggie looks wide eyed and flushed, but not about to make a run for it. Luke has to make sure, anyway. 

“I’m gonna show you how. If you don’t want me to, this is the moment to say _no_.” 

Reggie keeps staring, giving a small nod as his eyes wander to Luke’s lips. So that’s a yes, then. _Oh boy._ He really should have thought this through. He looks at Reggie’s face for a moment longer, taking him all in, his green eyes, the freckles on his nose, his pink lips that are about to be pressed against his. The fluttering is back, and with one last glance at Reggie’s lips, Luke leans in and brushes his own gently against them. He places one hand on Reggie’s cheek, the other on his waist, pulling himself closer as he’s pushing the other man against the wall. Reggie sighs, and Luke deepens the kiss, eliciting a moan from his new friend. Reggie’s arms are flailing a little bit, so Luke catches one of them mid-air and intertwines their fingers, holding on tight. He smiles, kissing Reggie just a little longer, because he _can_ , and he’s not sure if he will get another chance. Their lips fit together perfectly, moving against each other in a way that makes Luke feel a little lightheaded. 

When he pulls away, Luke has to steady himself on the wall behind Reggie. He feels a little weak in the knees, and the way Reggie _looks_ , a little tousled and thoroughly _kissed_. It’s almost too much. 

“I am _so_ bi, bro,” Reggie comments, voice low and a little big rough around the edges. Luke chuckles.

“Happy to be of service,” he says, panting a little as he looks back up. He can’t help it. He presses another short, chaste kiss to Reggie’s lips. “Now, let’s catch some punk rock?” 

Reggie nods and breaks into a brilliant smile. This time he’s the one who takes Luke’s hand, and pulls him back out the small, dark alleyway and onto the main road. Luke feels like he’s floating a little bit, and he regrets it greatly when he lets go of Reggie’s hand as they approach the club. It’s better that way, he knows. He hasn’t seen any paps on the road, but he doesn’t want them to be plastered all over the media together as something they aren’t before they’ve even known each other for a full day. 

“Your tickets?” The bouncer asks them as they approach and Luke frowns. 

“Tickets?” He’s never needed a ticket from pre-sale to get into _The Smell_ before. The man sighs.

“Yeah, kid. _Ticket_. This show is sold out.” 

“Okay. Who’s playing tonight?” 

The bouncer looks at him like he’s a bit slow in the head, and Luke is sure this man doesn’t know and doesn’t care that people usually hype him up for his own music and call him famous in turn. 

“Bunch of kids. _Simple Plan_ they’re called.” 

Luke nudges Reggie in the side. 

“They’re this up and coming pop punk band from Canada. They just released an album and their songs are _sick_ , bro. I’d love to check them out.” 

Reggie nods, grinning in a way that makes him look like he’s about to burst with excitement. It’s _adorable_. 

“Not without tickets, you won’t,” the bouncer says with a roll of his eyes. And Luke really hates playing the celebrity card, he really does. But with so many downsides of being in the public eye, there is no shame in reaping some benefits, occasionally, is there? 

“Dude. He’s Luke Patterson. Don’t embarrass yourself,” Reggie says, and Luke grins at him. 

“So? And what’s that supposed to tell me?” 

Luke shrugs. 

“Just ask someone in charge if we can go in. Tell them Luke Patterson and Reggie Peters are here to see the show,” he says smugly, because this always works. The bouncer still looks rather unimpressed, but he does eye Luke’s shirt now, and slowly pulls out a mobile phone. He dials, and a few moments later he tells the person who picks up just what they told him to. When he ends the call, he eyes them both rather begrudgingly. 

“They’re sending someone out to make sure you really are whoever you claim to be,” he tells them, and looks at Luke’s shirt again, frowning as he seems to compare shirt-Reggie with real-Reggie. “You sure do look familiar. I swear my wife mentioned you before.” 

“It’s possible,” Reggie says, shrugging. “I make country music, and I’ve had a few hits.” 

Before the bouncer can say anything else, a roadie appears in the doorway, immediately taking a double take when he spots Luke. 

“Holy shit! It’s really you. I thought someone was having us on.” 

Luke does a little curtsy and grins at him. 

“The one and only.” 

The roadie looks like he’s about to pass out as he ushers them in, and Luke gives the bouncer a smug grin as they pass him. 

“Tell your wife I said _hi,_ ” Reggie says, and he sounds so smug, Luke snorts. 

“I’m taking you two to meet the band first, if that’s okay? They really want to meet you,” the roadie tells them as he leads them through the tiny club into the even tinier backstage area. Luke remembers playing _The Smell_ in their early Sunset Curve days, and it always makes him feel some type of way. Sometimes he misses it. The tiny, trashy clubs, and people who only come to hear your music and don’t really care who you are. “I’m Benji, by the way.” 

“Nice to meet you, dude. Thanks for letting us in. We’re pumped to see the show,” Luke says, meeting Reggie’s eyes over his shoulder. 

“Aw, no worries, man. I’m a huge fan. We all are. I gotta show you my Sunset Curve tattoo later.” 

Luke loves seeing tattoos fans got in their honour, so he beams and nods. 

“ _Sick!_ I’d love to see it.” 

“Also, do _you_ think you could sign something for my mom later?” Benji asks, looking over his shoulder at Reggie. “She owns like every CD you ever released.” 

Luke snorts, he can’t help it. Reggie sends him an amused look. 

“Sure, man,” he agrees, then lowers his voice to a whisper, so only Luke can hear him when he adds, “I told you, it’s usually the moms.” 

“And they're gonna be so disappointed when you drop your punk album,” he whispers back, chuckling. “You're gonna be like their lost wayward son.” 

Reggie snorts. “Yeah, I can’t wait.” 

Benji leads them into the green room, where the band is lounging on a couch and several chairs across the room, all perking up the moment they enter the room. Luke takes a deep breath. He is excited to meet them, and he does love connecting with new musicians. He just wishes they could’ve gone to a show a little more anonymously and just rock out, he and Reggie. 

“Dude! It’s so cool you’re here. I’m Pierre,” one of the band members says as he jumps up and offers his hand up for a high five for Luke first, and then Reggie as well. The others introduce themselves as well, and for a little while they’re swarmed with questions, offered drinks, made to sign a few things, and asked to take a picture with the whole band. And Luke doesn’t mind any of that, really, but he still finds himself longing for some more alone time with Reggie. 

“I think none of us knew you were into punk, Reggie,” Pierre says eventually, “Or that you two were friends. It’s cool, man. I am digging a few songs of yours. _Home Is Where My Horse Is?_ Classic.” 

Luke snorts subtly, eyes snapping towards Reggie. He’s so going to tease him for that one later. 

Reggie shrugs. “Oh, yeah. I love punk rock. It was my first love, really. I _shred_ on the bass, it was the first instrument I learned. And I’m actually working on a pop punk album right now.” 

The whole band looks absolutely delighted to hear that. 

“Awesome, dude!”

“He’s also a big Sunset Curve fan,” Luke says, gesturing towards the shirt Reggie’s wearing. He doesn’t know why he says it, really. 

“And you’re a big Reggie Peters fan, it seems. Works out well for you two,” Pierre comments, and Luke instinctively looks down at the black shirt he is wearing, with Reggie’s face printed on in an artistic style and his name written in thick, dark red letters above it. He keeps forgetting he’s wearing it, and he tries not to blush as he grins and meets Reggie’s eyes. 

“I _am_ ,” he beams. He may not know any of Reggie’s songs yet, but he’s certainly a fan of him. Reggie returns his smile, and Luke feels a little weak in the knees again. Case in point. 

“Would you maybe want to come on stage later and play a song with us?” Pierre asks, snapping Luke out of his trance. He thinks about getting to play on a small club stage again, and he immediately finds himself light up. 

“Dude, hell yeah. I would love to.” He glances at Reggie and suddenly feels overcome with a need he didn’t know he had before. “You’re joining us as well, Reg, right?” 

Reggie shrugs. “I’d like that. I do know some Sunset Curve songs on the bass.”

The whole band beams at them. 

“So it’s settled, then. We’ll call you up. Let’s do _Now or Never?_ ” 

They all high five again, and then Luke drags Reggie out into the club to give the band some space to prepare for the gig. 

“You sometimes wish you could just do things anonymously again?” Luke asks as they’re walking towards the bar. “Especially going to gigs. I love what I do, I really do, and I love connecting with people through my music, but it can be so exhausting. I just wanted to rock out with you tonight, man.” 

Reggie sighs. 

“Dude. All the time. But to be fair, we wouldn’t have gotten in here tonight without the _fame._ ” He emphasises the last word, smirking. 

Luke orders two beers and hands one over to Reggie, who takes it with a small nod and a smile. 

“Cheers, man.” 

They’re just in time to catch the second support act, it seems, when people start cheering and heavy guitar music starts filling the small club. 

Luke is just about to really start feeling it, when someone taps him on the shoulder. So much for enjoying a punk rock show, he thinks. 

“Luke? Sorry. I just saw you and I wanted to say hi,” a girl, maybe a few years younger than him, says, smiling shyly. “I really don’t want to bother you, so I’m gonna leave again in a sec, I just really wanted to show you my tattoo,” she tells him, holding out her arm. It’s a beautiful illustration with the lyrics to _In Your Starlight_ wrapped around it. Luke feels something swell inside his chest, the feeling of having that connection with someone through his music that can never compare to anything else. He _loves_ it. 

“Dude! This is _sick!_ It’s beautiful! Oh man. I wish I had a camera with me so I could show it to the guys as well.” 

The girl smiles, and tugs at the hems of her band shirt. 

“Thank you! I’m happy you like it. It really means so much to me. This song… it saved my life in so many ways. So thank you for writing it.” 

Luke returns her smile, nearly bursting with that swell now. He really loves this part of his _job_.

“Well, it means a lot to me as well. So thank YOU for listening. What’s your name?” he asks. 

“Lane.” 

Luke tilts his head and keeps smiling at her. 

“Thank you, Lane. Do you want a hug?” 

Lane nods eagerly, so Luke wraps his arms around her and pulls her into a friendly hug, the way he usually does when he meets fans. He holds on until she lets go and steps back. 

“You’re even nicer than people say,” she tells him, looking happy and a little bit flushed. “Well, I’m gonna leave you to enjoy this band. They sound _sick_. See ya.” 

And then she’s off again and Luke takes a sip from his beer, sighing when he turns back to Reggie, who beams at him like Luke just hung the stars in the sky, or something. 

“You’re so good with fans. I should take notes from you,” he says, sounding a little breathless. Luke shrugs. It’s not like it’s something that is particularly hard for him to be. It just comes naturally to him, because he genuinely feels that connection, and lives his music with every fibre of his being. 

“Eh. From what I’ve seen so far, you aren’t half bad yourself. Let's go to the shadows a little bit, though. As much as I love those people, I would really like to see this band now.” 

He drags Reggie a little bit to the side, and they stand in silence for a while, just sipping their beers and enjoying the music, both rocking along to it with their heads and limbs. 

“Man, that riff was _sick_ ,” Luke comments at one point, and Reggie agrees, pointing out the drum solo next when it comes on. 

“They’re really good.” 

By the time _Simple Plan_ come on, they’re both on their third beer, and pumped as they finish off their discussion about the newest generation of Fender Strat guitars. 

They start off with a song Pierre introduces as _One Day*_ and Luke only needs to hear the first few lines to know they’re going to be a hit. The next few songs confirm that, and Luke feels so pumped that he even drags Reggie into the mosh pit, where they soon become the center of all attention. But they aren’t rockstars (or, well, country stars) for nothing, so they do enjoy their spotlight and rock out in sync, moshing and dancing and hyping up the crowd around them. Luke thinks he’s having the time of his life, and Reggie looks that way too, and Luke suddenly feels an impulse to keep this boy in his life, no matter what it takes. 

Pierre calls them up onto the stage right after their impromptu mosh pit show, and the crowd is going wild. 

“Who wants to hear some Sunset Cuuurve?” Pierre asks them and the cheers are deafening. The singer hands him a mic and a guitar, and Reggie takes over the bass, and as soon as he starts singing the first lines of _Now or Never_ he’s immediately overcome with that feeling that he loves more than his life. He switches back and forth with Pierre on the singing parts, and beckons Reggie over to share his mic for the pre-chorus. He nearly passes out having him so close and screaming his own lyrics back at him, unable to stop staring at his face, at his lips, at his sparkling eyes. He’s just the best thing Luke has ever seen. He knows he might butcher his own song if he keeps going down that road in his mind, though, so he shoves him away again with a rather painful little push, and they keep rocking out with the band, until they get to the part that is usually sung by Bobby and Reggie takes over the mic, singing the lyrics and holding the notes like they were made for him. Luke knows right then that he’s absolutely _fucked,_ but he doesn’t even care. 

They end the song on a high, and the crowd goes _nuts_ , making Luke buzz and feel like he can actually fly. He runs across the stage and tackles Reggie in a hug, swatting at his shoulder as he jumps up and down with him. 

“That was _amazing,_ dude! You _nailed_ that!” 

Reggie laughs with his whole chest, and Luke’s fluttering beneath the rib cage turns into a full on swarm of butterflies. 

“Well, Reggie, man. The crowd is making demands, it seems,” Pierre says over the mic, and Luke only notices now that the crowd has started chanting “Home Is Where My Horse Is”. _Oh_ , he definitely needs to hear that. 

Reggie grins as he takes a mic. 

“If the _crowd_ demands it, who am I to say NO?” he yells, like the true entertainer that he is. “Who wants to hear the unreleased punk version, though?” 

The shouts become deafening again, and Reggie beams. He gestures for Luke to take a guitar, and he does as he’s been told. 

“You’ll manage?” he asks, turning away from the mic. Luke doesn’t know the song, but he’s nothing if not quick on improvising on new songs, so he nods. 

Reggie takes an acoustic guitar and starts out with that, and Luke can’t take his eyes off him as he starts singing the most ridiculous lyrics he’s ever heard. 

_Home, what is it really?_

_Sometimes it’s a someone and not a place,_

_It’s that feeling of being safe,_

_It’s about who you’re with at the end of the day...(and for me)_

_Home is where my horse is!**_

Luke quickly gets the hang of the song, and the rest of the band seem to know the country version anyway, so they’re rocking out again, Reggie’s vocals hitting Luke somewhere deep in his chest. And when Reggie comes over to share his mic with him, Luke even picked up enough of the lyrics that he can sing the chorus with him, grinning as he holds eye contact. They’re so close, and he’s sure it looks like they’re serenading each other, the mic sharing only an excuse to blatantly flirt on stage without consequences because it’s only part of their show, of driving the crowd wild. 

Luke pulls Reggie in a headlock the moment the last chord rings out, and he faintly wonders how he can possibly feel so comfortable around him after only knowing him for a couple of hours. Luke almost feels like he’s known Reggie his whole life. Maybe he has, in another life. Or maybe it’s just because he kissed him earlier and they kind of jumped over several hurdles of getting to know each other by shoving their tongues down each other throats so early into their relationship. _Friendship,_ really. Luke does know he’s being ridiculous. He doesn’t even believe in love at first sight, or even in love at first-few-hours-of-knowing-each-other. It doesn’t matter. All he knows is that he feels something around Reggie, and he wants to know everything about him. He wants him to stay in his life, filling an empty space he didn’t realise was there before. 

They’re laughing when they stumble out of the club, playfully shoving at each other, still on a high from their performance. 

“Dude! That was so awesome! Now I really can’t wait to make my punk album so I can actually rock out like that on stage again!” Reggie shouts, and Luke high-fives him. 

“You are _incredible_ , Peters. Holy _shit!”_ he tells him, voice raised by the adrenaline rushing through his veins. He chuckles, shaking his head a little as he remembers the lyrics to Reggie’s song. 

“ _Home Is Where My Horse Is_ , though?” he asks with his eyebrows raised, and Reggie blushes. 

“Hey! It’s a good song, alright. It was my first hit. And in my defense, I wrote it when I was 16.” 

Luke shrugs, still laughing as he bumps his shoulder into Reggie’s. 

“That’s fair. I wrote some shitty songs in my teens as well,” he admits. “None of them became hits, though.”

“Really? Luke Patterson wrote bad songs?” Reggie asks teasingly as they start walking down the street again. 

“Shhh. Don’t tell anyone,” Luke hisses, and they both laugh again. Luke feels better than he has in a really long time, he realises. He’s still on his rush from performing music on a stage, he’s still buzzing with the _Simple Plan_ tunes they rocked out to, and he’s also filled with that warm feeling of getting to know someone you really click with, of building a bond, of establishing a connection. It’s intoxicating, almost, especially in addition to the fluttering beneath his ribcage that he can’t seem to shake around Reggie. 

“I feel like I could fly, man,” he says, feeling the urge to voice the intense emotions thrumming through his veins. 

“Me too,” Reggie agrees, and when Luke looks over to him, there is something very close to wonder on his face. “Can I take you somewhere?” 

Luke meets his eyes. 

“Sure. Anywhere,” he says, and he means it. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> * live recording of this song from Simple Plan from 2002 available [on Spotify](http://open.spotify.com/album/6OkC6DZsHpCr1Es5Q8StnC?si=kojYPJ4mTNSVwoxNkjuY7g)
> 
> ** lyrics by Jeremy Shada: [YouTube](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zVNZ-qpDa9U&ab_channel=JeremyShada)
> 
> follow me on tumblr [@sunsetcurveofficial](http://sunsetcurveofficial.tumblr.com)
> 
> and also check out the playlist I made for this fic. You can find it [here on Spotify.](https://open.spotify.com/playlist/62cFpv1FzWwrf9PZpCNxw9?si=18AjqZDURKaJRvZb5V8G-w)


	2. Second Degree Burns

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yoooo, my dudes. Thank you so much for the feedback on the first chapter!! It made me really happy to read, so here I am with chapter 2. Who's up for chapter 3 tomorrow, then?
> 
> This one is... aw, well, just read it for yourself. I think you're gonna love it. But we still got a little angst in store for this fic... hmm.
> 
> Hope you enjoy xx

“You’re taking me home?” Luke asks, smirking and raising his eyebrows as they’re stepping into a large, industrial apartment building. Reggie blushes, but takes Luke’s hand anyway as he leads him to the elevator. 

“Yes and no. You’ll see,” he tells him and shoves Luke in. Luke watches them in the mirror, and he can’t help noticing how cool they look together, how _good._ And he can’t help noticing how much he likes seeing their joined hands either. They look like a cool punk rock couple. Even the shirt Luke is wearing has become _punk_ in Luke’s mind, because no matter what Reggie is famous for, he’s very much punk to Luke. He has seen enough of him in the couple of hours since they met to know. 

Reggie seems to be thinking about something similar, if the way he squeezes Luke’s hand and intertwines their fingers is any indication. 

“You’re not taking me to your serial killer layer, are you?” Luke asks as they keep going up. 

Reggie hums. 

“Guess you’re gonna have to find out,” he says ominously, and his stupid grin is infectious. 

They’re stopping on the top floor, and Reggie drags him up a couple of stairs before they reach a door to the roof that he pushes open. He uses a light switch on the side, and then the roof is illuminated in what must be thousands of fairy lights and party light bulbs. There are sofas, and cushions, and more plants than Luke can count. It’s probably the coziest looking place Luke has ever seen.

“Holy _shit_ , man! This is _sick!_ ” 

Reggie smiles, dragging Luke to the front of the roof where they have an amazing view over the city. 

“I know, right? My friend Willie helped me set this up last year after I bought the apartment on the top floor. I just… needed to get out of my house for a bit. I wanted a place to stay downtown, with the noises of the city around. Malibu can get a little lonely sometimes.” 

Luke nods. He definitely understands feeling a little bit lost in your own oversized home. 

“I feel that, bro. Mansions are cool and all, but they aren’t really made for one or two people living there by themselves, are they?” 

Reggie hums in agreement. 

“Yeah… I’m not even living there by myself, but I still thought I was going insane in there.” 

There is a siren wailing in the distance, the sound of the cars rushing by down the street filling the night with a buzz that you definitely do not get in Malibu. It was comforting in a way Luke never really considered before. Knowing you aren’t alone, because people make noise around you everywhere. 

“I’m sharing a house with Alex, and trust me, I get lonely there anyway. I don’t even have to see him if I don’t want to in that house. It sure is big enough.” 

Reggie eyes him curiously. 

“You’re living with your ex?” 

Luke snorts. He always gets that question from the people who do know about his relationship with Alex. His answer varies every time depending on how much he wants to share with the person asking. He wants to share everything with Reggie. 

“Yeah. It’s different for us, though. We aren’t your usual ex-couple. We were best friends before, we had a good time together for awhile, but mutually decided it wasn’t working out the way either of us needed it to, and now we’re best friends again. We would never let anything get between us, we’re just too important to each other. And the band is too important to us, too. I love him, I really do. Just not the way I thought I did for a while. And Alex feels the same.”

Reggie smiles when Luke looks back up to see his reaction. 

“That sounds beautiful, man. It’s _dope_ that you’re close enough to just let it go. I wish I had someone like that. My best friend Willie and I… we’re close, but we aren’t _that_ close. I love that insane dude, but if we ever were to date, I don’t think we could just brush that off.” 

Luke returns Reggie’s smile and nods. 

“Yeah man, I’m so grateful. They mean everything to me. Alex, and my best friend Julie as well. It’s sort of similar, what I’ve been through with her.” 

Reggie’s eyebrows shoot up again, and his eyes widen a little. 

“Julie Molina? That’s right, you did date her for awhile a few years back, didn’t you?” 

Luke chuckles. He has a speech for that one, too. 

“Sort of. See, we have this incredible connection. We just click, and understand each other in a way that feels very rare. And we got the chemistry, too. So we both thought we were made to be together. And we tried. But then we both realised that we misjudged our connection, because we wanted it to be something it’s not like, so badly. It would’ve been so easy. It would’ve made sense. But we couldn’t make each other as happy in a relationship as we do being friends. Platonic soulmates, or some shit. I love that girl, I really do. And I had to learn that platonic relationships aren’t any less real, or less intense, or less important than romantic ones. They’re the same.” 

Reggie sniffles a little, and Luke’s head snaps up to find him a little teary-eyed. 

“That’s the most beautiful thing I have ever heard in my life, Luke. What the fuck?” 

Luke shrugs. He knows. He’s written so many songs about his relationships with Alex and Julie. He loves them both to death, and he will never stop thanking the universe for giving them to him. Watching Reggie now, he has a feeling somewhere down in his guts that he could be another gift, another person that is going to leave his mark on Luke’s life, and on his heart. There is just something about him that he can’t explain, something that draws them together in a way Luke hasn’t experienced before. He doesn’t really believe in the supernatural, but he does believe that some people just _click_ , and fit together like they were meant to be. 

“What can I say? Julie Molina is just a gift to the world,” he says with a smile. 

“I can’t argue with that,” Reggie agrees. “That girl has the voice of an angel.” 

“Yeah.” 

Luke flops down onto one of the blankets on the floor, suddenly not feeling like standing up anymore. He lays on his back instead and watches the few stars that made it through the thick layer of smog and light pollution over the city. 

Reggie lies down next to him, his pinky overlapping with Luke’s in their close proximity. Luke has an impulse to intertwine their fingers, so that’s what he does. 

“Do you believe in fate, Reg?” he asks. “Do you believe that some people are just meant to be in your life?” 

Reggie rubs circles onto the back of Luke’s hand, humming as he seems to consider his question. 

“Yeah,” he says eventually. “I never really thought about it before. But I think I do.” 

They’re quiet for a little while after, both lost in their own thoughts, their hands connected between them and keeping them tethered to each other in a way that makes it all feel a little more real. 

“I want to know _everything_ about you,” Luke says eventually, breaking their comfortable silence. “Is that weird?” 

He feels Reggie shifting onto his side, facing him, so that’s what Luke does, too. Their proximity almost startles him, so he lets out a shaky breath as he waits for Reggie to say something. 

“No,” he says softly, “It’s not weird. I want to know everything about you as well.” 

Luke looks at him, the fairy lights reflecting in his green eyes that look so much darker now, the faint dust of freckles on his nose, the way some of his hair has fallen out of its bun, and the way his lips are slightly parted as he watches him carefully. 

They’re so close, and Luke feels the urge to get even closer, until his lips ghost over Reggie’s, not quite touching yet, the anticipation a thrill Luke hasn’t experienced in a long time. 

And then he kisses him. 

It’s different from their first kiss, when it was all about proving something, when it was a little bit awkward, and Reggie was flailing and blushing, and Luke was more nervous than he would ever admit. 

This time it’s slow, and soft, and Luke feels a little drunk the moment his lips touch Reggie’s. He kisses back with a little more pressure, pulling Luke closer by his shirt as Luke’s hand comes up to cup his cheek. He deepens the kiss, tracing Reggie’s lips with his tongue and letting his hand wander from his face down to his side, his fingertips slipping just beneath the hem of his shirt. Reggie shivers, and Luke smiles into the kiss, increasing their pace a little bit and biting down on Reggie’s lower lip, immediately chasing the sting he probably caused with his tongue. Reggie moans quietly, and Luke lets his hand wander a little higher beneath his shirt, his skin so soft under his fingertips. 

Luke doesn’t know how long they keep making out on the floor, before they’re moving up to one of the couches, where Luke pressed Reggie into the cushions and hovers over him, letting his hands roam all over his body before pulling him into another heated kiss. They keep laughing when their angles are a little off, or when they almost tumble off the couch together, and the next moment they would moan softly again, and it’s probably the best time Luke has ever had making out with anyone. 

Eventually, Luke feels himself getting a little exhausted, so he pulls away, his eyes wandering over Reggie’s gorgeous face. His cheeks are flushed, and his lips are impossibly red and swollen, and he is the most beautiful thing Luke has ever seen. 

He pecks Reggie’s lips once more, for good measure, and saves his responding smile into his memories to keep safe forever. 

“I’m glad I met you, Luke,” Reggie says softly as Luke snuggles close to his chest. “I have to admit I never in a million years expected my night to go or end like this when I got dressed for the VMAs this afternoon.” 

Luke hums. 

“Me neither. I wasn’t counting on the weather tonight,” he says, wrapping himself tightly around Reggie on the small couch. Luke can’t see him, but he knows Reggie has a confused little frown on his face. 

“The weather?” 

Luke chuckles. 

“Yeah. _You_ are a force of nature, Reginald.” 

Reggie laughed, and Luke feels the vibration of it in his chest. 

“I can’t decide whether that was really smooth or really awful. Please don’t call me Reginald, though.” 

Luke giggles, closing his eyes. 

“Okay, _Reginald._ ” 

Reggie punches him on the shoulder, and Luke giggles some more, and that’s the last thing he remembers before falling asleep. 

+++ 

Luke is woken by the warm L.A. sun heating up his cheek. He needs a couple of moments to orientate, to remember where he was and why he was there. He takes a deep breath, and the warm body beneath him smells faintly sweaty, faintly like clothes picked up from a thrift shop, and like expensive shower gel and… Victoria’s Secret peach body spray? 

Looking up, he finds Reggie already staring at him wide eyed, and Luke frowns. Reggie looks scared, almost, and Luke doesn’t like it, so he pushes himself up a little and squints against the sun before leaning in and pressing a small, chaste kiss to Reggie’s lips. The man looks even more terrified when Luke pulls away, and the realisation does something unpleasant to Luke’s insides. Does Reggie regret their night? Does he regret kissing Luke? It feels a little heavy now in broad daylight, he can admit that. They haven’t even known each other for 24 hours, and yet here they were, both aware of how intense their night was and how much they shared. And suddenly, Luke feels a little awkward. He sits up, straddling Reggie’s thighs. 

“You okay, bro?” he asks with a frown. That seems to shake Reggie out of whatever trance he was in, and he blinks up at Luke, confused. 

“Yeah, I’m— I’m sorry. I just. Needed a moment. Last night was…” 

“Intense?” Luke provides. 

Reggie nods. 

“Yeah.” 

Luke attempts a smile, but Reggie still looks uncomfortable, so he clambers off him and off the couch, awkwardly scratching at the back of his head. Reggie sits up and sighs, rubbing a hand over his face. 

“I feel like I know you, Luke,” he says then. “But how is that possible when I met you like… what? 14 hours ago?” 

Luke shrugs, attempting another smile. 

“I feel like I know you, too, Reg. It’s cool.” 

But Reggie shakes his head, and Luke’s smile drops. 

“It’s scary,” he says, finally meeting Luke’s eyes again. Luke tilts his head. Why is the damn sun so bright? He doesn’t even see Reggie properly, damn it. 

“It doesn’t have to be,” he tells him. 

Reggie sighs, and Luke feels so heavy all of a sudden. He didn’t really think about what would happen in the morning, but this is not what he expected. 

“I’m leaving for Jamaica today. To work on my album. I’m gonna be away for a few months,” Reggie informs him quietly. Luke blinks. 

“Oh.” 

“Maybe… maybe when I come back, it’ll feel less scary.” Reggie does attempt a smile now, but this time Luke is the one who can’t return it. 

“I— I don’t get it, Reg. We had a good time, didn’t we?” 

Reggie nods. “We did.” 

He gets up from the couch and crosses the few steps between them to wrap his arms around Luke, pulling him into a hug. “We did,” he repeats. 

“Then why does this feel like goodbye?” Luke asks, voice hoarse. He knows his heart is breaking, and he hates that, because it shouldn’t. Not when it has been far from any harm 15 hours ago. People don’t fall in love so quickly. It’s not possible. 

“Because it is,” Reggie whispers into his neck. Luke shivers. “For now,” Reggie adds. 

Luke doesn’t say anything. He just holds onto Reggie a little tighter for a little longer, before the other regrettably pulls away. 

“You can write me, if you want,” he tells him, pulling a pen from his leather jacket and grabbing Luke’s hand. _regpeters@aol.com_ , he notes down onto the back of it, finally smiling again when he meets Luke’s eyes. “Or message me,” he adds, noting down a mobile phone number as well. 

Luke stares down at the writing on his hand, still unable to say anything. It takes him several seconds to shake himself out of it. He clears his throat when he does, tugging the sleeves of his denim jacket over his hands. 

“Alright. I guess… I guess I should go, then,” he says awkwardly, nodding at Reggie before walking towards the door, feeling awkward and embarrassed and so incredibly heavy. And he doesn’t like that. It doesn’t feel like him. 

“Luke,” Reggie calls when he’s almost reached the door. Luke takes a deep breath before turning back around, almost stumbling back when Reggie is suddenly right in front of him. He doesn’t have time to form a single thought before Reggie’s lips are on his, and Luke feels like he’s getting whiplash. He kisses him roughly, just for a moment, before pulling away again. 

“I’m sorry,” Reggie says, and Luke turns and leaves, not turning back this time. 

+++ 

Luke expects Alex to yell at him the moment he enters their house, but he can’t even find it in him to care. He just wants to hide in his bed for a while and write sad songs about a great guy and his broken heart. 

“Luke! Are you even listening to me?” Alex asks, glaring at him. Luke blinks. 

“Look, I’m sorry I just left, Alex. You know I can’t stand those events. I just… I didn’t think it through,” he says slowly, suddenly feeling like he’s about to cry. He really needs a hug, and he doesn’t even understand _why_. Reggie didn’t tell him that he doesn’t like him. He merely told him that he is scared, which is valid. And that he’s leaving to work on his album, which is also valid. He even left him with his contact details, so Luke can reach out to him. And he kissed him. So why is Luke feeling like his heart is breaking? 

“Are you okay, buddy?” Alex asks, his disapproval now replaced by worry. “Where did you go, anyway?” 

Luke sighs, looking down at his shirt. His heart aches. He doesn’t even know where to start. 

“Reggie Peters?” Alex asks, sounding amused. His eyebrow is raised in question, and Luke shrugs. Alex seems to have a lightbulb moment right then, and he raises a hand. 

“Wait, hold up. He also went missing from the show last night. His manager had to accept his award,” Alex muses, and Luke knows it won’t take him much longer to catch on. 

“He won? Wait, did we?” Luke asks, perking up. 

Alex snorts. 

“Yeah, we did. Way to miss out on this huge ass milestone for us, Patterson. Flynn was fuming, by the way.” 

Luke sighs again. He’s happy to hear that they won, but it’s a fleeting feeling. 

“So you ran off with Reggie Peters?” Alex deducts, and Luke nods - and then the tears spill over. Fucking hell. He’s so embarrassed, but Alex is there in a heartbeat, wrapping his arms around him. 

“I think I’m in love with him, Alex,” he sniffles. 

“Dude, what?” Alex’s eyes are wide when he pulls back a little to stare at him. “I didn’t even know you knew him. What the hell?” 

“I didn’t. I met him on the toilet last night when I was hiding in a stall, smoking weed.” 

Alex frowns. 

“You met him last night,” he repeats slowly, “And you’re in love with him? Luke, buddy. I don’t think—” 

Luke rips himself out of Alex’s arms and throws his hands up in the air. 

“I know, alright! I _know!_ I _shouldn’t_ be. But I can’t help how I’m feeling, I— I’ve never felt like this before, Alex. It’s like I _know_ him, even though we only spent like 14 hours together. It’s been an hour and I already miss him. It’s like he’s all I want now. And it _hurts—_ ”

Alex’s frown softens, and he reaches out to Luke, running a hand over his arm in an attempt to comfort him. 

“Did you sleep with him?” 

Luke shakes his head. 

“No. We just kissed. Fumbled around a little. Nothing too steamy. We were both too exhausted after performing with _Simple Plan_ in The Smell.”

Alex stares at him. 

“Okay, _what?_ I need to hear this full story.” 

Luke nods. They sit down on the couch together, and Luke starts recalling his night with Reggie Peters. 

By the time he finishes, he’s sniffling again, his head in Alex’s lap as Alex is stroking his hair. 

“You’ve really got it _bad_ , dude,” Alex comments. “I guess you were always one to fall easily once you feel emotionally connected to someone.” 

“Thanks, Alex,” Luke whines. “What am I supposed to do, now? Sit around for months on end pining for some stupid country singer I’ve only met once?” 

Alex sighs. 

“At least he gave you his number and his E-Mail, right? That means he wants to stay in touch.” 

“He said he’s _scared,_ Alex. Of what? Of _me?_ ” 

Alex laughs a little, and Luke bites him in the knee. 

“Ouch! Luke, come on. You know you can come across a little intimidating sometimes. You said he’s never been with a guy before, and what you described between the two of you sounds _intense_ , man. Give him some time.” 

Luke is about to whine some more, when the front door opens and Julie flaunters in, talking loudly before she even sees them. 

“Lucas, I really hope you have a good story for me, because I’m telling you, Flynn is _mad_ mad at you for just flunking out of the freaking VMA’s. You _won_ , too, you bastard—” She finally spots them on the couch and stops in her tracks. 

“What’s going on here? You alright, Patterson?” 

Luke hides his face in Alex’s lap, unwilling to face her judgment. He loves Julie to death, but she can be very persistent in grilling him. 

“He’s in love with Reggie Peters,” Alex, the absolute traitor, tells her. 

“He’s _what?_ ” Julie asks, voice high pitched. “Wait, didn’t he also go missing last night? You’re telling me you went _together?_ _You_ and _Reggie Peters?_ How did that even happen? I’d have guessed you didn’t even know who he was.” 

“He didn’t,” Alex provides. “He randomly met him in a toilet stall last night, they shared a joint, and off they went.” 

Luke sighs, finally sitting up to face Julie with his saddest puppy eyes, hoping it would spare him the disapproval of Julie Molina. She stares at him, and then she notices Luke’s shirt and snorts. 

“Only you, Patterson,” she says. “So you’re in love with him? Already?” 

Luke shrugs. 

“It _feels_ like it, Julie. I’ve never felt like this before, he’s all I can think about. But he… he left.” 

Julie sighs and comes over to flop down next to Luke on the couch, wrapping her arms around him. 

“You and your love life, Luke. When will we finally get it right for you?” 

Luke rubs his hands over his face. He wishes he could explain just how intensely he feels about Reggie, and how it doesn’t make any sense, and yet still feels like the most natural thing in the world. 

“That’s the thing, Jules. I think he might be _it._ And I don’t know what to do.” 

Julie hugs him a little tighter, and Alex joins her, sandwiching him in the middle. 

“You’re hopeless, bro,” he comments, but Luke snuggles close to his chest and just lets himself be held by his two best friends for a little while, trying his hardest not to think about a certain dark haired country singer. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> follow me on tumblr [@sunsetcurveofficial](http://sunsetcurveofficial.tumblr.com)


	3. Change of Weather

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yes, there was some angst at the end of the last chapter, wasn't there? Well. We'll see what's in store for our favorite boys. No spoilers, but this might not yet be an angst free zone. We might not have reached the peak of angst just yet. Say tuned.
> 
> As you'll see I wrote two songs for this chapter, but unfortunately I can't put them to music yet bc I literally started learning the guitar about two months ago after it gained dust in my living room for years and naturally I can't write music yet. So it's just the lyrics, even though I would have loved to create a melody for them. 
> 
> So, anyway. Hope you all like some good pining. 
> 
> Also!! I made a playlist for this fic. You can find it [here on Spotify.](https://open.spotify.com/playlist/62cFpv1FzWwrf9PZpCNxw9?si=18AjqZDURKaJRvZb5V8G-w)

Luke spends the entire following week hiding away in his bedroom, writing songs and treating his guitar a little more harshly than it deserves when he just can’t come up with a chord progression that makes sense for the song he’s working on. His strumming patterns are off, too, and he huffs in frustration, shoving his acoustic away from him a little too forcefully. The lyrics, on the other, hand come flowing right out of him, letting him produce five songs in as many days. There is one song in particular that he keeps coming back to, and he gets that itch about that keeps him going - that itch that tells him he’s onto something  _ great. _ It’s one of the most honest songs he’s ever written, and those are usually the best ones, because they come from deep within and connect to people the most. It’s what Luke always tries to achieve, and the deeper the connection he can build with fans through his music, the more successful and accomplished he feels. He doesn’t need awards to prove it. He just needs to see the looks in people’s eyes when they listen to his music, or the way fans express their love for his songs when they talk to him. He thinks it’s the best thing in the world. 

He stares at his journal and drops his pen on the bed as he goes over the song again. He’s called it  _ Force of Nature.  _ Because that’s what Reggie Peters is even outside of Luke’s terrible pick-up lines. 

_ Can’t get him out of my mind  _

_ Everything I have left behind  _

_ He’s like a force of nature  _

_ Sweepin’ in and knocking me off my damn feet _ ,

_ and now I can’t,  _

_ I just can’t get him out of my head _

_ I think it might be something  _

_ I never really believed in before  _

_ And now he’s gone _

_ Evaporated in the light of day  _

_ Like he was just a ghost  _

_ On a warm September night  _

_ I’m coming down with something  _

_ Might be a change of weather  _

_ He brought the sun and now there is only rain  _

_ A force of nature  _

_ Unrelenting and unstoppable  _

_ And all I can do is sit and watch  _

_ The devastating beauty of a hurricane  _

_ He takes my hand, let’s run away  _

_ He and I, beyond the light of day  _

_ We’re on a road to the stars  _

_ Carried by the wind, basking in the sun, _

_ and now I can’t,  _

_ I can’t get him out of my head  _

_ I think it might be something,  _

_ he doesn’t believe in _

_ So he left me stranded,  _

_ Evaporated in the morning  _

_ Like he was merely a ghost  _

_ On a blessed summer night  _

_ I’m coming down with something  _

_ Might be a change of weather  _

_ He brought the sun and now there is only rain  _

_ A force of nature  _

_ Unrelenting and unstoppable  _

_ And all I can do is sit and watch  _

_ The devastating beauty of a hurricane  _

_ So I am aching _

_ Falling, stumbling,  _

_ Hoping the wind  _

_ will carry him back to me  _

_ And I will wait  _

_ Just like the warm seasons _

_ Wait for snow  _

_ Beautiful and unrelenting  _

He figures it out eventually, and when he finishes writing the song and adds a killer melody, he thinks  _ Force of Nature _ might just be one of the best songs he’s ever written. It’s real, and it’s  _ honest, _ and Luke feels every word in chest when he sings it, Reggie always on the back of his mind. 

On the seventh day, he actually comes out of his room again to play the song to Alex and Julie, who are both lounging in the living room watching TV. Both of them gasp in fake astonishment when they see him, but Luke rolls his eyes and ignores them, sitting down to play them the song instead without saying a word. 

When the last chord rings out, Alex and Julie are both staring at him, and after a few seconds of silence, it starts making him feel a little uncomfortable. 

“What? Why are you staring at me like that?” he asks. His direct address seems to shake his friends out of it. 

“Several reasons, actually,” Julie says. Alex nods. 

“Dude, that song was  _ sick! _ I think this might be one of the best songs you’ve ever written,” he tells him. Julie nods. 

“I agree. It’s also painfully obvious that you’re still head over heels for a certain dark haired country boy, though.” 

Luke rolls his eyes. “Duh. That’s kind of the whole point of this song, Jules. Keep up, will you?” 

Julie pokes her tongue out at him, and there is a moment of silence before Alex clears his throat and shares a quick glance with Julie. He seems to have a silent conversation with her over that single glance, before turning back to Luke. 

“You do realise, though… that if we record and release this. People are gonna  _ know. _ About you. About you liking men.” 

Luke shrugs. He just can’t even find it in him to care anymore. He wants to connect with people, and he’s so sick of hiding. It was different with Alex. Alex has always been out, and Luke never had any issues with his own sexuality either, but he just didn’t want their relationship to overshadow their music. He didn’t want their relationship to be all people talked about, all people  _ care _ about, really. Alex never wanted to hide, and it was part of the reason why it didn’t work out. He’s always been a step ahead of him, and Luke wasn’t ready. This, though. It is a part of him. And he thinks the world should finally know. 

“Yeah. So?” he asks.

Alex blinks at him, then breaks out into a smile. He gets up from the couch and walks over to clap Luke on the shoulder. 

“Proud of you, man.” 

Julie beams at him from across the room, giving him a thumbs up. 

“Me, too. And if you’re ready, you should definitely put this song out there. It’s a hit. It’s going to be  _ huge _ , I’m calling it now.” 

Luke smiles, and for the first time in a week, he feels a little warm again, like a few rays of sunlight are breaking through the dark clouds he’s pulled around himself, gravitating towards his broken heart. 

+++ 

It takes Luke two weeks until he finally feels ready to send Reggie an email. He still thinks about him constantly, and Luke even bought his stupid CDs to listen to his stupid country songs, laughing at the lyrics, but somehow still falling a little harder for him all the same. His voice quickly becomes Luke’s favourite sound in the world, and it’s completely ridiculous. Alex laughs at him, and he has every right to. Luke knows he’s being embarrassing, but it’s like he can’t help it. Reggie came into his life like a freaking lightning bolt, and now nothing is the same. There is some damage, and he’s still vibrating with his electricity. 

Some celebrity news outlets on MTV somehow getting hold of a badly recorded clip of them performing with  _ Simple Plan _ doesn’t help, either. The quality is low, but they still look like they’re mesmerised by each other when they share a mic, and it makes something ache deep within Luke’s chest. 

He sends Reggie an email with a song he wrote about fans and punk music and tiny, trashy clubs after debating for several hours whether he should send  _ Force of Nature _ instead. He decides against it, because it would reveal all his feelings at once, leaving no doubt about them, to a guy he only met once and hasn’t heard from since. Luke has no issues with being vulnerable, but even he has his limits. Especially since he doesn’t know if Reggie feels the same. He takes a deep breath when he hits Send. He’s kept it casual, and now he waits. 

_ Hey, Reg. Check out this song I wrote, inspired by our little impromptu gig with Simple Plan. Hope you like it. How’s your album coming along? - Luke _

It takes Reggie two weeks to write back. Luke has been pouting ever since he sent his email, snapping at Alex and grumpily writing songs in his room again, somehow dramatically convincing himself that he will never see or hear from Reggie again. Maybe he even gave him false contact details just so Luke would leave him alone, he thinks. He does realise he’s being overly dramatic and annoying, but he feels like he can’t help it. He’s nursing a cracked heart, maybe not entirely broken, but painful all the same. He doesn’t think he’s ever missed someone quite so much. And it’s ridiculous, because out of all of his 24 years of being alive, he’s only spent 14 hours with Reggie Peters. So how can he miss him when he only shared a tiny fraction of his time with him? 

After two weeks of pouting and pining and snapping at his friends, Luke’s heart nearly jumps out of his chest when he finally finds an email from regpeters@aol.com on this computer. 

_ Luke. Hi. Sorry I haven’t replied sooner. The internet connection is kind of bad here and I didn’t really count on that when I gave you my email address. Anyway! I love your song. I can’t wait to hear the finished version. That night… I do think about it all the time. Is it weird when I say that I kind of miss you? I mean, I know we don’t really know each other. But I still feel like I do… it’s weird, isn’t it? It does still scare me. There is something I need to tell you when we see each other again. _

_ I did finish recording my first song for the album yesterday. Click on the link for the demo version. I swear this took 20 hours to upload, but it was worth the wait. I’d love to hear what you think.  _

_ xx Reggie  _

Luke’s butterflies are back the moment he starts reading, and they only grow more rampant as he goes along. He still can’t figure out why he feels so fiercely about Reggie, how he can claim to love someone he doesn’t even really know. But his heart disagrees, even though he knows that if he ever wants to be with him, he will have to be very patient, and give it time. He also faintly wonders what Reggie needs to tell him when they see each other again, but he feels too giddy about the fact that Reggie does have every intention to see him again, so he doesn't dwell on it.

Beaming at his computer, Luke opens the file called  _ SptmbrNght,  _ and the moment the first chords are strummed, he feels something bloom inside his chest. It seems to be a slower song, but punk rock nonetheless; pop punk, anyway. And then Reggie’s voice sets in, and Luke feels warm all over. He closes his eyes and listens. His voice sounds deeper and raspier when he sings punk, Luke thinks. He likes it.

_ On a Friday night in September  _

_ I met a boy with fire in his heart  _

_ He burned with it, lit up every room  _

_ Warm and bright, a lazy day of June  _

_ But the thing about fire is  _

_ That it’s a force you can’t escape _

_ And if you get to close  _

_ You might get burned  _

_ A hand in mine, a kiss on the mouth,  _

_ A song on our lips, and our hearts on our sleeves  _

_ So I burned with him for a night  _

_ Brighter than I’ve ever felt before  _

_ I’m not sure I can win this fight  _

_ He’s got a hold on me _

_ A melody in my heart, _

_ For all that he is fire _

_ He is also the fresh rain  _

_ after a hot summer day.  _

_ Woke up with second degree burns _

_ It’s what you get for playing with fire  _

_ But he’s got a hold on me _

_ I don’t want to let him go  _

_ Fear the choice isn’t mine  _

_ No it’s not mine _

_ Please burn me again  _

_ Just to make me feel bright once more  _

_ I burned with him for a night  _

_ Brighter than I’ve ever felt before  _

_ I’m not sure I can win this fight  _

_ He’s got a hold on me _

_ A melody in my heart, _

_ For all that he is fire _

_ He is also the fresh rain  _

_ after a hot summer day. _

_ How can something so impossible  _

_ Make so much sense?  _

_ How can I write this song, _

_ longing for his fire, _

_ when he’s barely more  _

_ than a stranger  _

_ on a September night?  _

_ I burned with him for a night  _

_ Brighter than I’ve ever felt before  _

_ I’m not sure I can win this fight  _

_ He’s got a hold on me _

_ but the choice isn’t mine  _

Luke thinks he is about to choke as he listens, his heart doing somersaults in his chest. Reggie wrote a song about him? There is no way this can be about anyone else, right? How many guys does Reggie meet on random September nights that he forms a connection with? Luke stares at his computer for several long moments, his heart beating against his rib cage as he feels his head buzzing. Reggie says he’s scared, but he’s the one of them who decided to put it all out there when Luke chickened out. He feels it, too. And Luke feels like he is bursting at the seams. 

“Alex!” he yells eventually, leaning back on his chair. “ALEX!! Come in here, alright? NOW!!” 

It takes about half a minute until Alex comes bursting in through the door, slightly out of breath and looking worried as his eyes dart around the room, assessing the situation. He calms down immediately when he realises that Luke is fine. Looking a little flushed, though, probably. 

“Jesus Christ, Luke. I thought you were like, dying again, or something.” 

Luke shakes his head and gestures him over with a frantic wave of his hand. Alex eyes him curiously, but takes the few strides across the room anyway. 

“I  _ am!”  _ Luke shrieks. He can’t describe it any differently. It’s embarrassing, but he does shriek. “On the inside, I am currently on the defibrillator.” 

Alex raises an eyebrow, wearing his signature expression for when he thinks Luke is full of shit again. 

“Okay?” 

Sighing, Luke stares at the song file still opened on his computer. His butterflies do another merry go round, and he is slowly starting to feel a little bit sick. The word  _ scared  _ is burned into his mind, floating right there with  _ the choice isn’t mine _ , and it’s all starting to give him whiplash. What does Reggie mean by that? Why would it not be his choice if he wants to  _ burn with _ Luke? 

“Reggie just sent me his new song. The first one he wrote for his pop punk album. I— just listen,” Luke tells his friend and presses play before Alex can say anything else. 

Alex raises his eyebrows as he is listening, eyes widening, and he keeps eyeing Luke from the side. So Luke isn’t hallucinating, then. Reggie wrote a song about him, and the implications are quite clear. He feels it, too, but something is holding him back. He’s scared of Luke. Still. And he doesn’t think he’s got a choice. 

“Why did he send this to you?” Alex wonders as the last note rings out. “I mean… it’s pretty on the nose. Especially for someone who appears to have feelings for you, but is clearly scared of them. Or of you.” 

Luke makes a face. He wants to slam his head against his desk and scream in frustration. He feels like his heart is being pulled in so many different directions, he doesn’t even know where to go first. 

“Thanks for putting it quite so bluntly, Alex.” 

Alex squeezes his shoulder and looks at him sympathetically. Luke thinks there is some pity in it as well, and he hates that, but he can’t blame his friend. He pities himself a little bit, really. 

“Sorry, man. It’s a beautiful song, though.”

Sighing, Luke nods. It is. It’s making his heart flutter at the same time as it is breaking it, but it is undoubtedly one of the most beautiful songs Luke has ever heard. And it’s not just because it’s about him and he’s biased, okay?

“It has a similar vibe to  _ Force of Nature. _ I guess your feelings about that night certainly aren’t one-sided,” Alex muses. Luke scoffs and closes out of the file on his computer to go back to his emails. 

“Yeah, lucky me,” he grumbles. “I just don’t understand. Why is he so scared of me all of a sudden? I’m not  _ that _ intimidating, am I?” 

Laughing, Alex pats Luke’s shoulder. 

“You can come across a little intimidating to people who don’t know you. But dude, you’re like the least scary person I know. You’re like a puppy.” 

Luke glares at him, but hums, biting his lip as he tries to come up with a reply to Reggie’s email. He’s never really been reciprocated and rejected both at the same time before, so he isn’t sure what to say. 

“Maybe it’s not you he’s scared of,” Alex says quietly. “You of all people know how terrifying your own feelings can be. And what you told me sounded intense like, on an  _ unusual _ level.” 

Luke nods, considering it. He knows Reggie hasn’t been with a guy before, and that he doesn’t have anyone he feels as close to as Luke does to Alex and Julie. He supposes it makes sense that he would feel a little overwhelmed if he is really feeling the same way about him that Luke does. And Luke knows he can be a little much, a little loud, a little too intense for someone who is not used to him. He can explain that one away and make sense of it, but one line still stands out. 

“What do you think he means when he says he fears the choice isn’t his?” he asks quietly, biting his lip a little harder. 

“No clue,” Alex says with a shrug, “It’s a bit of a weird thing to say in this context, isn’t it?” 

Luke rubs a hand over his face and nods. 

“Yeah.” 

“You’d have to ask him, I guess.” 

They’re quiet for a little while, and Luke’s thoughts are a jumbled mess of choices and fears and green eyes and raspy punk vocals. Alex leaves him with a comforting squeeze to the shoulder, and Luke stares at his screen for a few long moments before he starts typing. 

_ I love the song, Reg. Thank you for writing it. I just want you to know that I never meant to put you under any pressure. If I did that. I still want to know everything about you, but I get it. I’m not the easiest or most subtle person to be around. I know I can be a little intense. It’s your choice, but I’ll be waiting for you when you’re ready.  _

_ I totally miss you too, dude. Do you remember when we talked about fate? Well, maybe this is it. I don’t know.  _

_ Can’t wait to hear your album, dude.  _

_ Luke xx _

Luke takes a deep breath as he hits Send and leans back on his chair, staring at the ceiling as if it can somehow answer all his burning questions. Sadly, it doesn’t, so Luke gets up to join Alex in the living room to work on some songs and play on the PS2. Anything to get his mind off Reggie Peters. 

  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> [Check out my playlist for this fic on Spotify.](https://open.spotify.com/playlist/62cFpv1FzWwrf9PZpCNxw9?si=18AjqZDURKaJRvZb5V8G-w)
> 
> follow me on tumblr [@sunsetcurveofficial](http://sunsetcurveofficial.tumblr.com)


	4. Fear The Choice Is Not Mine

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you all for your kind words so far!! I love that you're enjoying this fic. Take a deep breath before you start reading this one, because... Angst, is all I'm going to say. I'm so sorry. The first three words will already come as a bit of a shock, probably.  
> Hope you enjoy this one anyway. 
> 
> Also, since you're all so eager to get the next chapters, I'll post them each day until we're done. So after today, we got 6 more to go. Although one of them is the epilogue, and I might post that one with the last chapter. We'll see.
> 
> Also!! I made a playlist for this fic. You can find it [here on Spotify.](https://open.spotify.com/playlist/62cFpv1FzWwrf9PZpCNxw9?si=18AjqZDURKaJRvZb5V8G-w)

**Six months later.**

“Do I have to come?” Luke groans as he takes a bottle of beer from the fridge and leans against the kitchen counter. He opens it and takes a big sip. 

Alex sighs, crossing his arms in front of his chest. 

“Yes. You’ve barely been among people at all those last six months, dude. That’s not you. I’m seriously getting worried at this point, and I’m not the only one. You even left the _Force of Nature_ release party early. You know Flynn only planned that for you. So _you’d_ finally leave our house again.” 

Luke takes another sip and shrugs. It’s true that he hasn’t been out a lot. He’s mostly hidden himself away and written music by himself, or even went on long hikes or camping trips. Which, okay. It sounds a little weird, he has to admit that. Luke Patterson has never been one to go hiking or camping before. But he watched a documentary on TV one day, and everyone in it went on and on about the cathartic benefits of hiking, so in an attempt to flee his own mind, he went for it. He’s got some great lyrics out of it, if nothing else. 

Truth be told, he hasn’t really felt like meeting new people ever since the last time he met someone backfired so drastically at him. Because after sending him that song he wrote about him, Reggie never replied again. And Luke tried, he really did. He wrote emails and sent texts, and even tried calling him, but Reggie never picked up. And Luke has seen him on the news. He knows he’s been back in L.A. for at least a month or two. 

So eventually, Luke gave up and spent months wondering how he got it so wrong. It’s not that he has a broken heart he feels like he can’t repair. It’s a little cracked, yeah, and feels sore where he provisionally patched it up. But something shifted inside him, and he can’t figure out what it is and how to put it back. Reggie Peters ruined him. In all the best and all the worst ways. Because no matter what, Luke still remembers that night fondly whenever he recalls it, and he can’t bring himself to regret it; not when he still feels the phantoms of his feelings that night bubbling under his skin. 

He’s been trying to keep his mind busy those past few months, after spending an embarrassing amount of time pining for a guy he barely knows. So he’s been working hard, spending time in nature in an attempt to clear his head like the people in the documentary suggested, learning new music skills, and receiving a lot of cuddles from Alex and Julie. And eventually it hurt a little less, and he stopped thinking about it every minute of every day. It was such a relief when he realised that. 

A week ago they finally released _Force of Nature_ as the first single of their new album. It immediately went to number one, making it their first song to do so, and Luke almost expected Reggie to finally reach out; to yell at him, if nothing else. But he didn’t. And Luke left the party early because the one person he wanted to see there, wasn’t in the room. So what was the point? Yeah okay, maybe he isn’t entirely over it, alright. 

“Luke. You know I love you, man,” Alex says softly, snapping Luke out of his thoughts. “But this has been going on for too long. You can’t still be hung up on a dude you only met once, who then wrote a song about you, leaving you hanging midair, only to never contact you again. The guy’s a dick. And I want my Luke back.” 

Luke knows that Alex is right, and he feels so pathetic for not being able to pull himself out of his funk. He is Luke Patterson, for crying out loud! And he _loves_ being Luke Patterson. 

“Yeah. I know. I _know_. And I’m sorry. Of course I’ll come,” Luke says, voice low and gentle as he meets Alex’s eyes. His friend smiles at him, and it’s so infectious that Luke has to return it. 

“Thanks, man. I was honestly terrified you’d leave me to go there all by myself. You know how anxious I get when I don’t know anyone at parties.” 

Luke smiles teasingly. The whole reason they have to go to this party is because Alex wants to impress his new almost-boyfriend that he met a couple of weeks ago when the guy ran him over on his skateboard in front of a coffee shop. 

“You know Willie. Isn’t that enough?” 

Alex bites his lip nervously, crossing his arms in front of his chest like he often does when he feels anxious. Luke shakes his head and releases a fond little laugh, leaning in and pressing a kiss to his cheek. 

“Chill, man. I told you I’m coming, didn’t I?” 

Alex gives him a small smile in response, and Luke takes his arm to drag him towards the door, finishing the rest of his beer as he walks. 

“Come on, then, before I change my mind again.” 

+

Willie lives in an artsy looking industrial building in downtown L.A. Luke tries his hardest not to think about Reggie’s stupid roof, which can’t be far from the loft, maybe a couple of blocks down, but the more he tries not to think about it, the more he naturally does. He annoys himself with it, so he shoves his hands deep inside the pockets of his denim jacket and stares darkly at his Vans as they climb up the stairs to the apartment. Alex nudges him in the side when they reach the right floor, where Willie is already waiting for them in the doorframe to his loft. Soft indie music is coming from the open door, and Luke takes a deep breath, trying to relax. This is a party. Luke Patterson has always been good at parties. He knows Alex is right. He has to get over his newfound social anxiety before it can grow roots within him. 

“Hey, hotdog,” Willie says with the biggest smile that can probably fit on his face when they approach, and then he leans in to peck Alex’s cheek. Alex blushes a faint shade of pink, and Luke feels a small spike of happiness for his friend in his chest. Alex deserves the world, and he is so clearly enamoured with this man in front of them. He can’t blame him, really, now that he sees him. Willie has an incredible smile, warm brown eyes, and features that make him look naturally attractive. 

“Hotdog?” Luke asks. Alex _giggles_.

“It’s because I was eating a hotdog when he ran me over and it just went flying everywhere,” Alex explains. Luke snorts. 

“That’s adorable,” he says, smiling at the two of them. “Also fits nicely with our near-death experience.” 

Willie raises an eyebrow, curiously eyeing Alex as he asks, “Near-death experience?” 

Alex shoves his hands in the pockets of his pink hoodie and shrugs. 

“Luke and I nearly died from eating a bad hotdog once. It was a whole thing.” 

Willie stares at them both for an extended moment, seemingly gauging their feelings about the incident before deciding that it was safe to chuckle without offending them. 

“What is it with people nearly dying from dodgy hotdogs?” he mumbles under this breath. Luke frowns, but doesn’t question it. He doesn’t know how often people nearly die from bad street hotdogs. It’s a freak kind of reason to die for sure, though. Shaking his head at himself, Willie says, “Okay, _hotdog._ I need this full story later.” 

Alex nods and grins a little dopily for a few moments of growing silence, before shaking himself out of it with a start. 

“Oh! Willie, this is my best friend Luke, by the way. Luke, Willie,” Alex introduces them. Luke reaches out to shake Willie’s hand. 

“Yeah, I know,” Willie says with a laugh, the moment Luke says, “Good to finally meet you, dude.” 

They nod at each other, and then Willie steps back to let them inside the apartment. It’s already filled with at least two dozen people, and Luke feels himself relax a little bit. Larger crowds he could cope with more easily than smaller ones these days. 

Willie leads them to the living room, and Luke feels his heart stop for an extended moment as he freezes about three steps away from a pair of familiar green eyes and a dusting of freckles. Luke stares and blinks, and Reggie stares right back at him, looking like a deer in the headlights. _Willie_ , Luke slowly registers. Of course. It just has to be his luck that Reggie’s Willie and Alex’s Willie are the same fucking person.

“Alex, Luke, I want you to meet my best friend Reggie. Though I guess Reggie and Luke already know each other,” Willie says with a knowing smile. Luke swallows, and he feels Alex squeezing his hand at his side. He squeezes back, maybe a little too tightly. His head is spinning, and he can’t take his eyes off Reggie. It’s only of very little comfort that he doesn’t seem to be able to stop staring at Luke either. 

A dark haired girl in a wheelchair appears between Reggie and Willie, her smile friendly as she looks at the new arrivals. Luke only notices her in the corner of his eye, though, his focus still on the country singer he’s spent the last six months pining after. Willie looks back and forth between the girl and Alex, Luke thinks. His heart is beating so loudly, he fears it’s about to jump right out of his chest. 

“And this is Reggie’s girlfriend, Kayla,” Willie says. And Luke’s eyes finally snap away from Reggie as he feels his whole world closing in on him. He must have misheard. Right? “Kayla, this is Alex and Luke. From _Sunset Curve._ ” 

Luke stares. He knows he does. He supposes everything he’s been through in the last couple of months suddenly makes sense. Why Reggie reacted the way he did. _Fear the choice isn’t mine._ He has a girlfriend. And he’s probably had her all along. Luke suddenly feels sick to his stomach. He swallows, breathing tightly as he forces himself to nod at Kayla. 

“Good to meet you, Kayla,” he rasps, risking a glance at Reggie, who looks pale as a sheet, still staring at Luke like he fears he is about to insert a knife to his chest. Luke can’t say that he doesn’t have an urge to. 

“If you’ll excuse me,” Luke says, and then quickly walks off to find some alcohol. He needs a drink to get rid of the sickness pooling in his guts. He grabs a bottle of gin from the kitchen and then immediately sets off to find a bathroom he can hide in. Or a bedroom. 

He ends up settling on a guest bed, drinking the gin straight from the bottle. It burns in his throat, and usually he’s not someone who drinks plain liquor, but right now the warm, fiery sensation is exactly what he needs. Sometimes he hates his life, and this is definitely one of his lowest moments, he decides. 

Alex takes about three minutes to find him. Luke glares at him, and his friend raises his hands in surrender. 

“Luke, I swear I didn’t know. I didn’t know they were friends, I didn’t know he was going to be here. And I think I’m just as shocked as you are about the girlfriend thing. Guess he really is a complete dick.” 

Somehow Luke still doesn’t quite think so, not that he can explain why, but he nods anyway. He has no reason to still believe that Reggie isn’t a cheating bastard who dropped him like a hot potato, and he wants to shake the feeling that there is more to it. He hates it. He’s wasted too much of his precious lifetime on that man already and he will not start making excuses for him now, when he knows there isn’t any world in which his behaviour can be justified. 

And damn, Luke feels his heart ache. Not because he can’t have Reggie, but because he feels like he just lost a person that never actually existed in the first place, but felt so real anyway. It’s like he had this idea of him that just popped like a balloon poked with a needle. 

“Yup,” Luke agrees, staring ahead and sipping his gin. Alex takes a step towards him, but then someone else clears his throat a bit awkwardly and Luke’s head snaps up to find Reggie in the doorframe. Luke glares, and Alex searches his eyes. 

“Sorry, I— can I talk to you? Please?” Reggie asks quietly. Luke sighs. He knows running from this probably won’t help him, so he nods, giving Alex a silent ‘it’s okay’ with his eyes. 

“I’ll be with Willie then, if you need me,” Alex says and turns to leave, but not without giving Reggie a pointed glare. Luke feels so lucky to have him, really. 

Reggie keeps standing there awkwardly when Alex is gone, and Luke gives him several moments before rolling his eyes and scoffing. 

“Get on with it, then,” he grumbles, and that finally sets the man in motion. He steps into the room and closes the door behind him. Luke takes a big sip from the gin just to drown out the traitorous thrill of being in the same room as Reggie again. Of being alone with him again. Of seeing him, period. 

“Look, Luke… Man, I’m sorry. I should’ve—” Reggie starts weakly, and Luke feels like he can’t take much of his stammering right now. So he snaps. 

“So, you have a girlfriend. That’s interesting new information that you didn’t think was important to disclose that night? Or is it _new_ and you just didn’t bother to let me down gently?” he asks, voice as cold as his heart feels, looking up to meet Reggie’s stupid eyes. Reggie looks… _devastated,_ actually. And that’s surprising, because Luke really expected him to look guilty, or ashamed, or even _smug_. But certainly not like his whole world is crashing around him. 

“It’s not like you think. Kayla and I…” he sighs, sitting down on the bed next to Luke and fidgeting with the sleeves of his flannel. Luke stares at him expectantly, eyebrows high on his forehead. “We’ve been together since high school. But it’s not… Do you remember that I told you I bought the apartment downtown because I couldn’t stand being in my house in Malibu anymore, even though I’m not living there alone? It’s mostly because _she’s_ there. We— we aren’t happy. I don’t love her like that anymore, and I haven’t for a very long time. And I don’t think she loves me, either.” 

Luke frowns. That makes sense and doesn’t make any fucking sense at all both at the same time. 

“Okay? Why don’t you just break up, then?” 

Reggie sighs again, running a hand through his hair. 

“It’s not that simple. The wheelchair… Kayla and I got into an accident a few weeks after we graduated from high school. It was my fault. I let her distract me while driving and I lost control and… we crashed into a river. It was really bad. We both nearly died, and Kayla ended up paraplegic. She was doing really badly for a while. She used to run track and she just had a really hard time accepting the wheelchair. It’s still… not _great,_ most of the time. And I just… I can’t leave her. I feel too guilty… like… like I owe her. I don’t know what she would do if I left her.” 

Luke takes several long moments to process this new information. His heart aches for Reggie, it really does, but at the same time he knows it doesn’t change much about what Reggie has done to _him_ , specifically. Luke doesn’t appreciate being made a fool of, being _lied_ to. He really thought he had a genuine connection with Reggie, and now it snapped and hit Luke right in the face, leaving him bruised and sore. 

“Why didn’t you tell me?” he asks quietly. Reggie bites his lip, his fingers nervously picking some fluff off the sleeves of his green flannel. 

“I didn’t think I would… would feel this way about you,” he says quietly, “And then I just wanted you for myself. No Kayla for once, just _me_ , and what _I_ want. And I realise that wasn’t fair. It was selfish. It’s why I got so scared, too. You’re so…” He sighs. “I’m so sorry, Luke.” 

Luke thinks he understands. But he also knows it doesn’t change anything. He feels something twist uncomfortably in his chest, and he tightens his grip around the bottle of gin. 

“Okay. I think I get that. I don’t like it, but I get it. It doesn’t explain why you sent me that song, told me you miss me, and then never replied again, though. I felt like a complete _moron_ , Reg.” 

Reggie closes his eyes for a moment, as if to gather his strength. When he opens them again, there are tears on the verge of spilling over. 

“I didn’t mean to send you that song. I meant to send you a different one. One that’s not about you. I was so tired that night and kind of exhausted because I got into a fight with Kayla over the phone. Once I realised my mistake, I… I guess I just ran. I didn’t mean to, but that song is so honest and I wasn’t ready to… to share it with you. I _did_ miss you, though. I still do. I _meant_ to see you again and tell you the truth. None of that was a lie. And then… what you said in your last email… _Fuck_ , Luke. The way I feel about you… it’s the most wonderful and yet the most terrifying I have ever felt about anyone.” 

Luke looks at him for a long moment, frown etched deep into his forehead. His traitorous butterflies want to go fluttering again at the admission, but he shoots them down one by one. 

“You know how _sad_ this is?” he asks instead. “Because I actually thought I felt that way about you, too. I really thought we had something. Hell, I wrote _Force of Nature_ about _you_ , man. I’m sure you’ve heard it, because it fucking went to number one. But all you did was use me to cheat on your girlfriend that you’re unhappy with. It’s not fair, Reggie.” 

“Thought?” Reggie echos, voice small. “As in, you don’t feel that way about me anymore?” 

Luke scoffs, rubbing a thumb over the cool glass of the bottle in his hands. 

“I feel that way about a person who doesn’t exist. An idea. I fooled myself into thinking I knew you, when I really didn’t.” Luke meets Reggie’s eyes. The tears have spilled over now and are running down his cheeks. The sight makes Luke’s throat feel tight, but he pushes through. “You just aren’t the person I thought you were, Reg,” he says sadly, wiping a tear from his own cheek. 

“Luke,” Reggie gasps, his voice almost drowned out in a sob. It would break Luke’s heart if he didn’t freeze it in place to keep it from further harm. “Please don’t say that. That night, I… I never felt more like myself in my entire life.” 

Luke doesn’t break the eye contact he has with him when he says, “Well, too bad you weren’t honest, then, Reggie.” 

Getting up from the bed, Luke hugs the gin close to his chest and looks at Reggie for a few long moments. He looks so small sitting there crying, and maybe Luke’s heart does break. It breaks for them both. 

“If you want my opinion,” he says, and he really doesn’t know why. He just wants to find Alex and let himself be hugged for an extended amount of time, really. “You can’t stay with a person just because you feel guilty, or because you think you should, because you owe them something. It’s not fair to them, and it’s not fair to you. It’s shit what happened to you guys. But life is just shit sometimes and you gotta deal with it anyway. You said you let her distract you while you were driving. Maybe start there. Are you really the only one who is to blame? That’s the first thing that stood out to me. If she guilt trips you into staying with her… then she’s a _dick,_ man. I’m sorry for her, but she’s a dick. And so are you. You need help, Reggie. Get a therapist, I don’t know, talk to someone. But figure your shit out before you drag someone else down with you.” 

_Like me,_ Luke doesn’t add. And then he leaves the room and an idea he’s clung onto for too long behind. 

+++ 

Alex wants to leave with him, but Luke tells him that it’s fine, and that he’s going to stay with him at the party. And it _is_ fine, really. He feels a little shaken, and like he has a sore spot somewhere deep inside his chest, but in many ways he feels sobered up, like he just got off the longest high of his life. Like he can finally be himself again now that he understands that he’s been made a fool of, but it’s not his fault. He hasn’t done anything wrong, and he will not let anyone else’s bullshit make him feel any differently. So Alex hugs him for a little while, soothingly stroking his back, and Luke happily takes the comfort he’s being offered. 

“For what it’s worth,” Willie tells him, “I’m sorry, man. He hasn’t told me everything that happened between you two, so I didn’t realise it was this bad.” 

Luke laughs a little hollowly and shrugs. 

“It’s fine. Clearly he didn’t tell me everything either.” He bites his lip, and a phantom of care itches under his skin, demanding to get out. “Look out for him, will you? I think he’s really going through some stuff.” 

Willie nods, and Luke finds that it’s enough to calm the part of him that still stupidly cares about Reggie Peters. 

“Of course. Actually, I should probably go look for him anyway. He’s been gone for quite some time now.” 

Willie leaves in the direction of the guest bedroom and Luke snuggles a little closer to Alex’s chest. 

“Tell me later?” Alex asks. Luke nods. 

About half an hour later, Willie reappears with Reggie stumbling behind him, eyes red rimmed like he’s actually spent the last hour crying all by himself. Luke feels a little ache in his heart again, but he has to remind himself that it isn’t his fault. Reggie has dug himself his own hole, and now he has to hurl himself back out again. Luke doesn’t really know him that well, as he had to realise rather harshly, so there isn’t anything he can do to help him. 

“Let’s play truth or dare!” someone in the room suggests rather loudly, and Luke rolls his eyes but is somehow dragged into a circle around the kitchen island anyway, with about eight people he doesn’t know, Alex, Willie, Reggie, and Kayla. He avoids looking at the latter two. He isn’t sure how he feels about the girl now that he knows what he knows about her. Reggie stands a little outside the circle, nursing a drink and looking like he’s completely drawn in on himself. That’s all Luke notices before he forces himself to look away again, anyway. He takes a deep breath, watching as the game starts and goes on for a little while but barely paying attention to anything anyone is saying or forced to do, the cheers and chants drowning out in the noise of his thoughts. He doesn’t even know what he’s thinking about. It’s everything and nothing, random nibbles and fractions of thoughts here and there as he avoids thinking about the growing ache in his heart that he hoped to avoid. He really just wants to go home and scribble his thoughts onto a piece of paper and find riffs and chord progressions to go with them until they become something he can make sense of. 

Someone says his name, and Luke snaps back to reality, painting on his best camera smirk as he raises his glass and picks truth with so much more enthusiasm than he feels. 

“Alright,” a girl he doesn’t know says, “Who is the last person you kissed?” 

Luke snorts. He feels like he is back in high school, and even the blush that tries to rise to his cheeks feels almost reminiscent of his teenage self just trying to figure himself out. His eyes act on their own accord and find Reggie across the kitchen island. Reggie’s eyes are already on him, still faintly pink rimmed and alarmed, his cheeks red. Luke holds his gaze for several moments, the thought entering his mind that he has all the power to throw him under the bus right now. He tilts his head, mouthing _‘You.’_ and watching as Reggie looks outright panicked. Sighing, Luke tears his eyes away and turns to his side to press a quick smooch to Alex’s lips. 

“Alex,” he says casually, shrugging and raising his glass again, before stepping out of the circle and heading to the living room to catch his breath. 

“Dude!” Alex hisses as he comes after him. “I’m really trying to get somewhere with Willie! How is this going to look to him?” 

“Relax, man,” Luke says, “Willie’s a smart guy. What was I supposed to say?” 

Alex makes a face at him and rolls his eyes.

“I don’t know, lie? You don’t know any of these people anyway.” 

Luke takes a drink and doesn’t say anything, stepping back a little as Willie approaches behind Alex. 

“Thanks, bro,” he says, looking at Luke. “For not throwing Reg under the bus. You would’ve had every right to.” 

Alex whips around to stare at his almost-boyfriend. 

“You aren’t mad?” 

Willie chuckles. 

“No. Of course not. I know how close you two are and I know why Luke did it. It’s chill, man.”

Alex’s anxiety immediately melts away, turning into a happy smile, and Luke matches it just because there is nothing better than seeing his best friend so happy. He and Willie stare at each other with dopey smiles on their faces, and Luke decides that it’s time for him to leave, so he asks Alex if he’s going to be fine without him now, which he confirms, and heads out. 

He takes a deep breath when he steps into the warm April night air. And for the first time in six months he feels some sort of purpose again as he takes a taxi home and picks up his guitar. He will never let anyone get to him the way Reggie had again. He promises himself that. He will never let anyone distract him from what he was born to do and loves most of all again. He won’t allow anyone to make him feel as lost as he has for the last seven months again. He’s Luke Patterson, and he only needs his music to be happy anyway. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oh boy. Well, that took a turn. I can tell you that we reached peak angst here, though. Do these to seem like they can actually stay away from each other for long? Hmm. Nah, they'll be back in no time. But they got a lot to work through. See you tomorrow xx
> 
> (I got a fluffy prompt fill coming tonight as well, so check that out to soothe your aching heart if you want!! xx)
> 
> follow me on tumblr [@sunsetcurveofficial](http://sunsetcurveofficial.tumblr.com)


	5. Longing For His Fire

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Friends!! I'm so sorry for all the pain I caused yesterday. But also I'm not. I hurt myself, so it's fine. This one will hopefully soothe your hearts again a little bit. 
> 
> Also!! I was thinking. Would you be interested in reading this story from Reggie's POV mayhaps? Once this one is all posted, of course. I think there is a lot to explore on his side, and it could be really cool. Let me know what you think!! 
> 
> Now. Let's get back to these two dumbasses getting their shit together. Or not.

Reggie is harder to avoid than Luke counted on now that Alex and Willie are officially boyfriends. He is at every party, sometimes even shows up at their house with Willie, looking distinctly uncomfortable when he does, always insisting that Willie forced him to come out with him, and Luke always tells him that it’s chill. It’s not like he hates Reggie. They’re simply back to being strangers, and Luke doesn’t make any effort to change that anymore. The soreness in his chest is still there, and he always needs a couple of seconds to gather his bearings when he sees Reggie, but he’s getting better every time. It starts a little rocky, though, to put it lightly. 

The first time Reggie comes around with Willie about two weeks after the disastrous party, Luke nearly knocks himself out by hitting his head on an amp when he trips and falls down a couple of stairs upon seeing Reggie in the living room. He ends up sprawled on the floor with a bruise on his forehead, scraped knees from the carpet, and red cheeks, because he is so embarrassed. He hasn’t expected to see the man again so soon, is all. And it’s even worse, because Luke woke up that day feeling a little bad about himself and his life and drowning in self-pity and his heartache a little bit too much, so he put on his most comfortable but also most ugly pink jogging pants, and his _stupid_ _Reggie Peters_ shirt from the thrift shop, of all things. Yes, it’s one of those days, and Luke is not proud of it. So, he falls wearing _that_ , injures himself, and ends up with three worried looking men rushing to his side. Reggie’s eyes are wide as they wander over his chest, and Luke wants to leave the country. 

“What the fuck, Luke, are you okay?” Alex asks, dropping to his knees beside him, reaching out in an attempt to assess the damage. Luke glares and swats his hands away. 

“I’m _fine,”_ he hisses, but when he tries to sit up, he feels a little dizzy and sinks back down. “Okay, maybe I need a moment,” he snaps, and really, he wants to cry. He’s embarrassed and frustrated and heartbroken, and it all just boils down into a big ball of irritation. 

It gets even worse when Reggie makes a tentative attempt at reaching out to him.

“You might have a concussion, man. Maybe Alex should take you to a hospital,” he says slowly, the worry in his voice palpable, and Luke hates it. He doesn’t want to hear it. So he glares at Reggie.

 _“You,”_ he growls, “You just stay far away from me.” 

Reggie immediately draws in on himself, cheeks red as he averts his eyes. He looks guilty, Luke realises. And well, he probably should. 

“I’m sorry, I told Willie it wasn’t a good idea for me to come here, but he insisted,” Reggie says quietly, sending accusing looks in Willie’s direction.

“Because you keep hiding away in that apartment of yours! You fucked up, now deal with it, bro,” Willie says, and it’s the most indignant Luke has ever heard him. Not that he has known him for a particularly long time. But still, Willie always has such a laid back attitude that it is almost startling to hear him like that. 

Luke sighs. His head hurts, and he’s still embarrassed, and he really can’t deal with this right now. 

“Look, it’s chill, man. I won’t kick you out. Just don’t be mad if I don’t want to be in the same room as you right now. As soon as the spinning stops I’ll just be back in my room.” 

Luke does end up in the hospital that day, and it turns out that he did suffer a mild concussion. So he has a headache for the next two days and a fashionable bruise on the forehead, but he supposes it just matches how he feels on the inside. 

The next time Reggie comes to their house, Luke is already in the living room, playing on the PS2, and when he looks up and meets Reggie’s eyes, he looks like _he_ wants to leave the country this time. 

“I’m sorry,” he says immediately, gesturing around, “Willie can be really stubborn. I can leave.” 

Luke rolls his eyes. He’s locked all his feelings firmly away, the good as well as the bad, so looking at Reggie does nothing to him now. Almost. He shoots down an urge to kick him in the shin first, and then a stray butterfly that has absolutely no right to be there at all. 

“Nah,” he grumbles, “I told you it’s chill, man. I’m not a flailing porcelain doll that shatters upon seeing your stupid face, alright?” 

Because Luke isn’t. He is _fine._ And if he writes an angry song about porcelain dolls that night, it proves _nothing._

“I think you’re going through the stages of grief, dude,” Alex points out when Luke plays him the song the next day. “Maybe in a bit of a jumbled up order, though. You had acceptance first, then depression, now we got anger. I guess you could say there was a bit of denial before the acceptance set in. Have you been bargaining?” his friend ponders. 

Luke flips him the bird and rolls his eyes, but goes to look up the five stages of grief on his computer anyway. He thinks Alex might be right. 

Reggie mostly avoids him the next few times he comes over, always looking away or sitting on the other end of the couch, looking like he wants to be invisible. Luke just keeps making a sour face whenever he’s there, and Alex keeps sending him warning glances whenever he says or does something with a little more aggression than necessary. He knows he’s being irrational, but it’s like he can’t help it.

After a few weeks or a month, however, Reggie actively starts talking to Luke when he comes around with Willie, sends him smiles across the room, or even brings him drinks when he goes to get one for himself in the kitchen. And Luke is irritated at first, glaring and snapping at him, unsure how he wants to deal with him, but one day he decides with a start that he has no room in his life for negative emotions anymore. He thinks he’s used up all his energy. Whatever underlying feelings he might still have for Reggie don’t matter, and it’s becoming clearer each day that Willie will be a permanent addition to their life, and in turn, so will Reggie. There is no point in hiding from him. 

So eventually, Luke stops giving him the shortest answers possible, even asks some questions back, and returns his smiles when he notices them. 

“Hey, Luke,” Reggie says shyly when he and Willie come over for film night one day, maybe a month and a half after the dreadful party. And Luke expects the same irritation he felt every time Reggie greeted him like that since he started talking to him, but he comes up blank. 

So he shrugs, says, “Hey, Reg,” and goes to fetch himself a drink with a new feeling of lightness, like a weight has been lifted off his chest. When he returns to the living room, Reggie is smiling at him from the couch, clearly happy about the casual greeting he received, and Luke inadvertently smiles back. Reggie just _has_ one of those smiles. It’s not like it’s Luke’s fault, really. 

Alex and Willie are still in the kitchen, where Luke just walked in on them making out against a counter when he got his drink, but the two of them were so caught up in each other, they didn’t even notice. Luke loves to see it, because he knows how happy Alex is with Willie. It’s what he deserves. 

“So, how have you been?” Reggie asks tentatively. 

Luke shrugs. 

“I’ve been alright. Busy. Album’s close to being finished. What about you?” 

Reggie smiles again, and it’s a little unfair how weak Luke feels in response to it. 

“Good, actually. I’ve been—” Reggie starts, but then Willie and Alex come _hollering_ into the room, and Luke doesn’t get to hear what Reggie has been doing. He finds that he genuinely did want to know. 

The next few times they’re all hanging out go much the same, except Reggie doesn’t make another attempt at telling him what he’s been up to, and it starts itching a little under Luke’s skin. 

Sometimes he thinks there are phantoms of the butterflies that died a rather tragic death that day at Willie’s party, but they’re just that. Phantoms. He can’t let them be more than that, because the moment the phantoms appear, he also remembers the way Reggie lied to him and then ignored him for months on end, when Luke really thought there was a connection between them. It still hurts sometimes, but then he focuses on his music, and he knows he’ll be fine. 

The day things really change between Luke and Reggie, however, is when Alex and Willie decide to disappear to Alex’s room when they’re hanging out watching movies one night, leaving Luke alone with Reggie on the couch. It’s the first time they’re alone for more than a few minutes since that day when Luke met his _girlfriend._ Ugh. 

It’s a little uncomfortably silent at first, and Luke hates it, is about to say something just to make it go away, because it feels even more out of place between _them_ than it usually does with people. And Luke is always the loud one, he’s always the one to break the ice in every awkward social situation he gets into. He opens his mouth, but then Reggie blurts “I broke up with her,” and all Luke can do is stare. It takes him several moments to recover, and some more until he feels able to form words again. 

“You did?” he asks tentatively, turning around and pulling up his legs so he can sit cross legged on the couch and face Reggie. The other man mirrors his movement, a small smile stretching on his face. 

“Yeah. I should’ve done it years ago, but I was so stuck on my guilt, I didn’t realise it wasn’t fair to her to keep her in a loveless relationship either. It took _you_ to make me see that. What you said at Willie’s party… _thank you,_ Luke. I mean that. I started seeing a therapist the week after, and I sat Kayla down to talk. I told her the truth. About me and her… about— about _you._ She wasn’t happy with me, but… I think in time she’ll realise that it’s best for both of us to be apart.” 

Reggie smiles as he talks, and Luke realises how _free_ he looks, like a huge weight has been lifted off his shoulders. And suddenly he realises that the change in Reggie’s demeanour in the last couple of weeks probably has the same source. He tilts his head and returns his smile. 

“That’s great, Reg. I’m happy for you.” 

Reggie hums, idly playing with the sleeve of his blue flannel. 

“I don’t think I would have gotten there without you,” he says quietly. “I’m so sorry for the way I treated you. And I understand if you don’t want to be… don’t want to be friends after this. But I’m still so glad I met you that night.” 

And well, yeah, Reggie fucked up. But Luke fucked up so many times with Alex and Julie, and they never once gave up on him. And he thinks maybe this time it’s his turn to not give up on Reggie just yet. He turned it all around once Luke pointed out his mistakes. Maybe that makes him worthy of a second chance. Impulsive and quick to forgive as he is, he grins and reaches out to slap Reggie on the knee. 

“Don’t be stupid, Reg. Our best friends are up there making _sweet luv_ right this moment, that alone makes us friends, too.” 

He chuckles, and Reggie releases a startled sort of laugh. Luke tilts his head and jumps up to grab the guitar he’s discarded next to the couch at some point that day. “Wanna play some music?” 

Reggie’s face lights up immediately. 

“I would love to.” 

“Grab the bass from the wall,” Luke says, pointing at the red Fender bass guitar on the wall across the room. “There should be an amp in the corner as well.” 

Reggie nearly falls over his own feet as he jumps up to get the bass, and once he’s all plugged in they start jamming some _Simple Plan_ songs they both picked up at their gig that night, and then some _Green Day,_ and a few _Fleetwood Mac_ songs that Reggie insists on _._ Luke is once again in awe when Reggie starts singing, but he doesn’t show it. He knows his feelings are still there somewhere, buried, lying dormant, but he’s not ready to let them come back to life. He’s still not sure that Reggie is the person he thought he was, and he can’t risk getting it wrong a second time. They’re having a good time, though, and Luke enjoys the flow between them when they play music together.

“Do you wanna hear my new song that’s coming out next week?” Reggie asks eventually. Luke smiles and nods. He always likes to hear Reggie’s punk music. And his country songs as well, although he would never in a million years admit that to anyone. 

“Is it about me again?” he asks with a teasingly raised eyebrow. Reggie blushes, but shakes his head. 

“Sadly, no. But…” he pauses, carefully studying Luke’s face. “ _September Night_ is one of my favourite songs I’ve ever written, so if you don’t mind I would actually like to put it out eventually.” 

It’s not a question Luke even has to ponder on. Music is the most important vessel for self-expression, and if Reggie wants to release a song about him that clearly means something to him, then Luke is the last person who will stand in his way. 

“Dude! _Of course!_ It’s such a great song, it would be a waste to just leave it on a hard drive somewhere to gain dust. Plus, I released a song about you as well. It’s only fair.” 

Reggie smiles happily, and Luke quickly stomps on the single butterfly coming to life in his chest. 

“Thanks, Luke,” he says, the relief radiating off him in waves. Then he chuckles. “And you’re welcome for the number one, by the way.” 

Luke laughs and throws a pillow at him. 

“Stop trying to steal my credit and get on with it.” 

Reggie keeps laughing, but he leans over to snatch Luke’s guitar away and puts the strap around himself instead. 

“Alright. I’m kinda shit at playing the guitar, though. So no judgment.” 

Reggie nods to himself and then starts strumming Luke’s electric guitar with skilled hands trained from spending so many years playing bass. His guitar playing is fine, Luke thinks, maybe not outstanding, but solid. And then he starts singing, and Luke is sold anyway, just like he always is. There is just something about Reggie’s vocals that touches the emotions buried deep inside his chest. 

It’s a song about his parents, Luke realises about half way through. He definitely relates to that particular topic, having written a few songs about his own as well. In fact, the ballad he wrote about his falling out with his mother when he was 17, _Unsaid Emily_ , was Sunset Curve’s highest charting song before _Force of Nature_. 

Luke tries not to stare at Reggie and tries not to think about how _ethereal_ he looks in the low fire light of the fake chimney, fairy lights behind him, tries not to notice his freckles this time, and the way his emotions become visible on his face when he sings. But then he remembers that he can’t trust Reggie yet, and it becomes easier to look away and just listen to the song. 

When the last chord rings out, Luke claps and hoots, grinning at Reggie as he opens his eyes again. 

“I love it, bro. Your guitar playing is pretty solid too, by the way. I love the riff just before the bridge. It’s _sick,_ man. Song’s about your folks, isn’t it?” 

Reggie nods. 

“Yeah. Thank you, Luke.” 

Luke looks away for a moment, silently trying to decide whether he trusts Reggie _enough_ to go into this particular topic with him. He thinks it over for a moment, before looking back up and meeting Reggie’s eyes. 

“I relate, man,” he says. “I’ve been through a lot with my parents as well. I always fought with them when I was a teen, because they didn’t want me to be in a rock band. They were just worried, but… it escalated, and I ran away when I was 17. They put up missing person posters everywhere, bro, you wouldn’t believe it. And I regretted it, but I was too proud to go back. It took me until we got our first Hot 100 to go back and make up with them. I needed them to see that my dream was worth it. Anyway. We’re good now, but it was hard, man.” 

Reggie hums and nods, a small smile dancing around his lips. 

“ _Unsaid Emily_ is about your mom, isn’t it?” 

“Yeah,” Luke confirms, and Reggie absently picks at the strings of the guitar as if he is looking for the right words to say. 

“I haven’t spoken to my parents since the accident,” he says eventually, and Luke’s head snaps up, eyes wide. 

“But that was—”

“Six years ago, yeah,” Reggie says with a sigh. “I’m not sure I will ever speak to them again, if I’m honest. They… weren’t great, growing up. They fought a lot. They drank too much. And my brother and I usually took the brunt of it. They said some things after the accident that I couldn’t forgive, so I just left and never turned back.” 

Luke bites his lip. 

“I’m sorry, Reg,” he says quietly, and he means it. “That can’t be easy.” 

“It’s not. But I have my brother, at least. And I do still talk to my grandparents as well. Could be worse, I guess,” Reggie tells him with a smile. “Let’s not dwell on it, alright? I’d much rather hear the latest song _you_ ’ve written.” 

Luke nods. He gets that. He really does, and he doesn’t want to spoil the mood by making Reggie talk about things that upset him. So he laughs, thinking about the song he came up with the day before when he was bored and slightly drunk on gin. 

“Alright. Don’t be disappointed, though. It’s not on the emotional side, let’s put it like that.”

Reggie eyes him curiously, a smirk pulling at his lips.

“What’s it about, then?” 

“Gin,” Luke says matter-of-factly, and Reggie nearly drops the guitar as he bursts into laughter. Luke catches it before it can hit something or fall to the floor and possibly break a string. 

“I need to hear this,” Reggie announces, and Luke happily plays it for him. 

+++

Luke feels pretty much at ease around Reggie again after that night. He’s still a little bit wary and immediately stops to stomp out any feelings or thoughts that go beyond friendship the moment they traitorously appear, but the more time he spends with Reggie, the harder it becomes. He even comes around the house without Willie sometimes, now. He brings his dog instead, and Luke thinks that alone is reason enough to keep him around. The first time it happens, about a week after their impromptu jamming session, Alex raises a surprised yet knowing eyebrow at Luke, and Luke knows he won’t be able to avoid _the talk_ later. For now he just rolls his eyes at him, though, and leads Reggie right to their little studio in the basement, where they spend the whole day working on new music together. The thing is that Luke really enjoys playing music with Reggie, thinks they bounce off each other perfectly, and it turns out that writing comes even more naturally to them. Reggie always gets what he’s onto, and Luke understands what Reggie is trying to do, even if he doesn’t find the right words or chords to describe it. It works well, and Luke doesn’t really want to stop now. He even helps Reggie work on some of his new country songs, though he makes sure to complain about it a sufficient amount of time. 

When Reggie leaves that first day, Alex is already waiting in the kitchen with another raised eyebrow and a glass of wine. 

“Say it,” Luke sighs as he fetches a glass from the cupboard and pours himself a glass as well, leaning against a counter.

“I’m just worried about you, Luke,” Alex says seriously. Luke sips his wine and turns to face Alex. 

“Well, you don’t have to be. We’re just friends, and that’s it. We work well together.” 

It’s only half a lie, anyway. Luke has no intention of pursuing anything else with Reggie right now. Not anymore. 

“You have to excuse that I find that a little hard to believe, given the fact that you were very much convinced you were in love with him only a couple of months ago.” 

Luke shrugs, sipping his wine, trying not to think of the intense whirlwind of emotions he felt after that night with Reggie. He knows his feelings aren’t _gone_ , but he buried them where they can’t hurt him when Reggie turned out to be a lying cheater. And now that Reggie fixed his mistakes and is working on getting to know him better, Luke isn’t sure how to feel, but he’s too terrified to set his feelings free again just yet. 

“Well, I fell out of love when I found out he was cheating on his girlfriend with me,” Luke says grumpily. No matter how amazingly he gets on with Reggie again now, it’s still a sore spot in his chest.

“Okay. But he listened to you and broke up with her. He turned his life around. So maybe you’re… falling back in?” 

Luke snorts, but it’s a much more high pitched sound than he expected, and therefore makes him sound almost a little hysterical. He sighs. 

“Even if I _was,_ Alex, I wouldn’t want to act on it right now. I just want to get to know him better. No harm in that, is there?” 

Alex hums, swirling the wine around his glass. 

“I guess not. Just be careful, yeah? I don’t want you to get hurt again.” 

Luke smiles softly at him and walks over to press a kiss to his cheek. 

“And I love you for that. But it’s really fine, I promise,” he tells him, “Now. Reggie and I have been working on this song all day, and I’d really like your input.” 

Alex returns his smile, and even though he still looks a little concerned, Luke can also see the tentative relief on his features. 

“Alright. Let’s hear it.” 

+

Reggie comes around the house most days after that first day in the studio, either with Willie or by himself, just to hang out or work on music with Luke. He always brings Hotdog, and Alex makes several attempts at stealing the small white Pomeranian by hiding it in his room when Reggie wants to leave at night. Luke can’t really blame him. Hotdog is probably the cutest dog he’s ever seen. 

Aside from playing with the dog, they’re mostly working on music, really, because that’s what Luke spends most of his time on anyway. Occasionally, they take breaks and play Tony Hawk Pro Skater on the PS2, but even that often turns into another music session, because they’re both digging the soundtrack of the game so much. There is a _Sunset Curve_ song on there as well, and every time it comes up, they just end up rocking out instead of playing the game properly. 

One afternoon, when they’re down in the studio working on a new song, Julie comes over. She just returned from her Europe tour and Luke hasn’t seen her in over two months, since a few days before Willie’s party, anyway. So he nearly throws his guitar into a corner and trips over his own feet when she appears in the doorway with a soft smile on her lips and two cups of coffee in her hands that she puts down onto a desk. Luke pulls her into the tightest possible embrace, picking her up and spinning her around, making her shriek as she laughs. Luke missed her so much, really. She smiles happily when he puts her back down, her cheeks slightly flushed as she tucks her hair behind her ear. 

“I missed you too, Patterson,” she says, and Luke presses a kiss to her cheek. Her eyes find Reggie over his shoulder, and she raises a surprised eyebrow at him. Right. The last thing she knows is that Reggie is a lying cheater who just ditched him when things got a little uncomfortable for him. He will have to pull her aside to give her an update, before she can develop the same worried crease in her forehead that Alex likes to wear around him and Reggie. 

“Hi,” Reggie says behind him. “I’m Reggie.” 

Julie, bless her, smiles as if she doesn’t have enough reason to be confused or worried about his presence. But Luke knows that she trusts his judgment, _generally speaking,_ so she just goes with it.

“Yeah, I know,” she says with a laugh, “I’m Julie.” 

Reggie matches her laugh and grins a little dopily. 

“Yeah, I know. Big fan, by the way.” 

Julie points at him and says, “Ha! Well, thank you. I really love your new song. Love that you went punk.” 

Reggie blushes a little, and it’s completely adorable, and Luke knows he should stop himself from even finishing those thoughts. He doesn’t need them right now. But Reggie is adorable anyway, _damn him,_ and Luke can’t help it. 

“Thank you. It’s a lot of fun.” 

“I can imagine,” Julie says. “So, what are you guys working on?” 

Luke immediately lights up, jumping right back into his song writing mode by giving Julie a rundown of the song they’re currently working on. Reggie gives his own input as well, and Julie eyes them both curiously as they talk themselves into a frenzy, almost. Luke thinks they’re a little bit too excited about their shared work, maybe. 

“I would love to hear it,” Julie tells them with a smile. “Is it a _Sunset Curve_ or a Reggie Peters song?” 

Luke and Reggie stop to look at each other for a moment. They didn’t actually talk about it at all, but neither option feels quite right to Luke. Judging by the look on Reggie’s face, he feels the same. 

“It’s a Luke and Reggie song,” Luke and Reggie say at the exact same time, both heads snapping around to look at each other with equally wide eyes, and then they start laughing. 

“Like Simon and Garfunkel?” Julie asks with a raised eyebrow. 

Luke shakes his head, still laughing, and Reggie voices his exact thought when he says, “No. We actually like each other.” 

Luke gives a little shrug and smirks in agreement, as if to say _‘what he said’_ , and he expects the look Julie is giving him. He also expects it when she asks him if she can talk to him for a second and then drags him out of the studio by his arm. Luke gives Reggie an apologetic look over his shoulder as he is being pulled out, but Reggie waves him off and focusses back on his bass. 

“Spill, Lucas. Clearly I have missed an update or two. I thought we didn’t like him anymore, because he’s a lying cheater?” Julie says the moment they’re out of earshot. Luke sighs and scratches at the back of his head. He gives her a rundown of the recent events she missed, and when he finishes, Julie gives him the same look that Alex gave him that day after his first writing session with Reggie. 

“I know what you’re going to say, but you don’t have to worry about me. I’m fine. Reg and I are just friends. He makes me a better writer. That’s all,” he says before she can voice her concerns. Julie reaches out to squeeze his forearm. 

“I believe that you think that right now, Luke, but you and I both know how easily you fall in love with people over music, and _this_ dude you were already pretty much gone for, before everything went to shit. I just don’t want you to get your heart broken again.”

Luke sighs. He knows his friends are only looking out for him, but he’s getting so tired of having to reassure them that he knows what he’s doing all the time. He’s not entirely sure he actually _does,_ but at least he knows that if it all goes to shit again, it’s his own fault. 

“And I love you for that. I told Alex the same thing. I don’t know, Jules. Any feelings I might have had for him… they aren’t there now. I can’t access them, anyway, because I can’t trust him yet. Maybe… maybe if I can, one day. I don’t know. I’m just trying to focus on the present, and on my music.” 

Julie assesses him for a long moment and Luke wants to squirm away from her gaze, but then she pulls him into a hug. 

“Okay. If you’re fine, I’m fine. I know you make your own decisions, Luke. Alex and I just want you to be happy,” she says softly. Luke hums and wraps his arms around her waist. He really missed her so much.

When they get back to the studio, Julie fixes Reggie with a serious glare that makes the poor guy splutter a little bit where he’s still sitting on the couch, idly strumming on his bass. 

“If you hurt him again, I’ll cut you,” she says, and Luke swears Reggie shudders, his cheeks turning red. Julie may look sweet and innocent, but that woman can be terrifying if she wants to be. Luke knows that first hand. 

He blushes at her bluntness, though, and glances nervously in Reggie’s direction. He receives a soft smile he wasn’t expecting and promptly has to kill a few stray butterflies. 

“I won’t. I promise,” Reggie says softly, and Luke finds that a big part of him wants to believe him. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> follow me on tumblr [@sunsetcurveofficial](http://sunsetcurveofficial.tumblr.com)


	6. A Hot Summer Day

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hallo friends. Slightly later today. Apologies. I actually got an interview for a really cool internship tomorrow so I'm nervous as heck. It's at a major music label everyone and their mom knows and getting it would just be a DREAM. ANYWAY. Not sure why I'm using this as a diary right now lol. You're all here to read a new chapter. AND
> 
> We are going to Disney in this chapter. Anyone in the mood for some fluff after all that angst? 
> 
> In advance: I have never been to Disney. This might be completely off. My apologies for that. Just pretend it's like this in this universe. lmao.

Luke sighs as he flops down onto the couch and crosses his arms in front of his chest. His friends are currently pestering him to come to Disneyland with them, but he’s really not too keen on spending a whole weekend with two couples being the odd one out. He knows Alex and Willie will be off somewhere again at the first opportunity anyway, maybe screaming on a rollercoaster this time, and Julie and Flynn will be whispering sweet nothings at each other the whole time since they’re still in their honeymoon phase after finally getting their shit together a few weeks ago. Bobby is busy doing who knows what again, and Luke knows he doesn’t like Disney, so there is no point in asking their rhythm guitarist to come along either. So he _knows_ he’ll end up walking around the park by himself taking pictures with fans and looking like an idiot when he could just as well have stayed home to work on some songs. 

“You could ask Reggie to come,” Willie suggests. “He _loves_ Disney. He’s not gonna say no.” 

Somehow that prospect seems even worse than wandering around by himself, Luke thinks. He’s been spending so much time with Reggie in the last couple of months, and it’s getting harder and harder to ignore his buried feelings that are not only still there, but growing stronger by the minute. 

“Why don’t you ask him, then?” Luke asks grumpily. He definitely will not ask Reggie on what could only be interpreted as a triple date. It’s embarrassingly terrifying, but Luke is also too proud to give in now. 

Willie sighs and eyes him for several long moments before shrugging and pulling out his mobile phone. 

“Alright. If you wanna play it like that. I will.” 

Luke glares at Alex on behalf of his boyfriend’s antics, but Alex, the traitor, merely shrugs and smirks. He hates them all a little bit. Alex and Julie have become good friends with Reggie as well over the last couple of months and have somehow decided that he can be trusted again. So now, instead of worrying about the state of his heart, they keep trying to push him into admitting his feelings. 

And this is how Luke finds himself roped into a weekend at Disney with two couples and Reggie Peters, who he then has to share a room with as well, of course, because his friends are cruel shitheads like that. 

“I can’t believe either of you,” Luke hisses when he gets a moment alone with Alex and Julie while Willie and Flynn are loading their bags into the car. “A few months ago you were both nagging me about being careful and worrying about me, and now you’re forcing me to go on triple dates and share a freaking room with him.” 

Julie merely cups his cheek with her hand and strokes it with her thumb.

“You’ll be fine, honey,” she says with a smile. “He’s made a mistake, but there is no reason to believe he’ll make another. Second chances are what we’re all for in this house.” 

She gives him a few gentle pats on the cheek and nods encouragingly. Luke glares at her.

Alex shrugs and loops an arm around Luke’s neck.

“He’s pretty convincing. I love that dude. Plus, Wille trusts him. You have my blessing, bro,” Alex tells him and pats his other cheek. He and Julie both press a kiss to his cheeks, and Luke keeps glaring as they laugh and walk out the door. He sighs and is about to follow them, cursing them as well as his life, when they both pop their head back into the doorframe. 

“We’ll kill him if he hurts you, anyway. He knows that. He won’t dare,” Julie says, and Alex gives a thumbs up. Luke rolls his eyes and follows them out. 

They’re taking two cars to drive to Anaheim, and naturally his friends make him drive with Reggie. Which isn't a problem, really. It’s not like doesn’t spend most of his time with him anyway. He’s just irritated by his friends’ sudden insistence that it is a good idea for him to act on his feelings for Reggie. Luke is a proud person. He’s not just going to fall on his knees in front of him after everything that happened between them. Plus, there is still a little itch under his skin that isn’t sure whether Reggie can be trusted with his heart a second time. Though he fears that train might’ve already left the station quite some time ago. 

It’s chill enough. They’re listening to blink-182 and Sum 41, singing _All The Small Things_ and _In Too Deep_ at each other, and Luke feels warm, because it’s what he loves doing. He loves jamming along to good music, loves feeling it in his veins, loves sharing it with someone who loves it just as much as he does. Plus, the sun is shining, and suddenly life doesn’t feel so bad at all and he even starts thinking that their trip might not be such a bad idea after all. 

At least he thinks that until _Force of Nature_ comes on, and Luke kind of freezes as he stares at Reggie, who keeps his eyes firmly on the road, but blushes anyway. 

“I’m sorry,” he says, “I forgot I put that on this particular CD.” 

“You’re-- you listen to it?” Luke asks. He doesn’t really know why he thought Reggie doesn’t listen to it. It’s a good song, after all. And Luke listens to _September Night constantly_. Only because he knows to appreciate good music, of course. 

Reggie smiles. “Of course I listen to it.” 

Shrugging, Luke thinks, _‘Screw it,’_ and starts singing along to himself. He knows he will get a reaction out of Reggie, so he keeps going, smiling as he’s practically serenading him. And Reggie blushes deliciously, even though he can’t meet his eyes, because he has to keep his own on the road. 

“What did you think I didn’t believe in?” Reggie asks, giving him a curious side-eye. Luke stops singing and frowns at him. He thought it is quite obvious what he meant. Snorting, Luke looks away from Reggie and out of the window instead. 

“Love? Love at first sight? Dunno, man,” he says with a self-deprecating tone to his voice. It feels like a dangerous thing to say, putting it between them so bluntly. 

Reggie hums. He is silent for a long moment, and Luke just watches the trees and buildings fly by outside the car window. 

“And you believed in it after we met?” Reggie asks eventually, voice low. It feels like thin ice they’re walking on, and Luke swallows around the tightness in his throat. He remembers waiting for a reply to his last email, remembers being introduced to Kayla at Willie’s party. He doesn’t think he’s ready. 

“Maybe I did, Reg,” he says with a sigh. “But I can’t… I can’t talk about this right now. So let’s not, alright?”

He thinks he notices Reggie flinch ever so slightly, but he quickly covers it up with a small smile and a nod. They’re quiet for the rest of the short ride, and Luke knows he won’t be able to avoid the topic for much longer if he doesn’t want to live through the most awkward weekend in the history of humankind. So when Reggie parks the car, Luke turns to him with a sigh. 

“Look. You really fucking hurt me, Reg. But I got over it, and we’re friends now, right?” 

Reggie meets his eyes, and there is something sad in them that Luke has no trouble placing. He feels the same in a lot of ways. 

“Yeah. Of course we are,” he says breathily, biting his lower lip. He doesn’t say what he actually wants to say, and Luke is grateful that he doesn’t. But he doesn’t want to shut that door the whole way either, so he decides to put a foot in, just in case. 

“Let’s just not overthink it, okay? Whatever happens, happens,” Luke tells him, reaching out to squeeze Reggie’s hand. His friend nods, and the smile on his lips sets a few butterflies loose. Instead of killing them, Luke lets them roam freely this time. Whatever happens, happens. 

++ 

“Our friends aren’t subtle, are they?” Reggie asks when he and Luke enter their shared hotel room. He’s not even surprised when he finds a queen size bed instead of the two single ones he hoped for. He knows better than to underestimate his friends, though. Luke snorts. 

“Have you met them? An elephant in Home Depot is more subtle than they are.” 

Reggie puts his bag down by the window and smirks, a faint blush on his cheeks. 

“I actually thought Alex and Julie weren’t my biggest fans, to be honest.” 

Luke gives him a pointed look. 

“That was before you wrapped them around your finger, Prince Charming,” he says teasingly, pulling a fresh shirt out of his backpack. He takes off his old one, quickly searching for his deodorant. When he looks back up, Reggie is staring at him rather unabashedly, only the faintest pink blush gracing his cheeks. 

“Like what you see?” Luke asks with a smirk, snapping Reggie out of it and making him flush for real. 

“I— I’m sorry,” he stutters. Luke chuckles. 

“Chill, man. I know I’m hot.” 

He watches as Reggie splutters, and it’s way too much fun to stop to reevaluate what he is doing. He’s flirting. He knows. 

Reggie snorts.

“Well, we do love a narcissist.” 

Shrugging, Luke puts on his fresh shirt and reaches for his sleeveless hoodie to wear on top. 

“It’s not narcissism, it’s confidence,” he tells Reggie, who makes a face and chuckles, putting up his hands. 

“Never heard of that.” 

Luke eyes him curiously, tilting his head and noticing the nervous way Reggie keeps fiddling with the seam of his t-shirt. He supposes he’s never considered that Reggie might be lacking in confidence, with being an international country star and all. 

“Come on, now. You’re plenty hot yourself, Peters,” he says and Reggie blushes an impossible shade of red. Well, at least he blushes the shade of red Luke thought was impossible before he met him. 

Chuckling, Luke puts on his orange beanie and a pair of sunglasses. It won’t keep everyone away, but he thinks he can avoid a few non-fans who only recognise him from TV that way. Reggie does the same, removing his hair tie to wear his shoulder-length hair open, and putting a black beanie on top. With his own pair of sunglasses, the red flannel and the black jeans, he looks like a rockstar. Luke stares at him for a moment too long, his insides heating up a little, before clearing his throat. 

“Let’s go meet the others.” 

+

Luke and Reggie are the first to arrive at the front of the hotel, but Luke doesn’t find that particularly surprising, considering they are very likely the only _not-_ couple that made it in and out of their hotel room without a make out session in between. And sure enough, Alex and Willie are both looking a bit red-cheeked and tousled when they finally come out of the building. Julie and Flynn take even longer, and are still giggling and whispering at each other when they finally do. 

“So, how’s it going, Reg?” Willie asks, eyeing Luke in a very much not subtle way, before turning back to Reggie with a raised eyebrow. Reggie blushes, and Luke rolls his eyes. He’s starting to feel like he’s an offering at some kind of weird ritual. 

“Reggie loved watching me undress,” Luke comments dryly. Four heads immediately snap around to him, and the fifth looks away, flustered. This isn’t going to work, Luke decides. He doesn’t want to spend the whole day with his friends trying to push him and Reggie together and making eyes at them, or asking if they are in love yet. So, naturally, his lack of impulse control kicks in, and he takes Reggie’s hand. “Now, if you’d excuse us. We’re on an important mission to the Mad Tea Party.” 

Reggie stares at him, surprised, but laces his fingers through Luke’s anyway. 

“We are?” he squeaks, but Luke is already pulling him away from their friends, who do nothing to try and to stop them, just as Luke expected. 

“You’re welcome,” Luke hisses as he keeps dragging Reggie along the way to their first ride. “I don’t know about you, but I definitely can’t take a whole day of _that_. You know they won’t stop pestering us.” 

Luke isn’t sure why he doesn’t let go of Reggie’s hand. He slows down a little, but keeps his hand where it is, and he finds that he has no desire to let go just yet. It’s probably a bad idea to run around Disney holding hands anyway, but Luke never cared that much about what the tabloids say. 

He finds Reggie smiling at him when Luke turns to look at him, and he can’t help smiling back. Reggie’s smile has always been infectious, and Luke’s resistance is crumbling any second he spends time with him. He knows this too, but he also knows it’s futile to try and avoid it. Something about him and Reggie has always felt inevitable. 

“So, we’re going for the spinning teacups first?” Reggie asks. Luke nods. 

“They’re fun, man. Let’s see how fast we can get ours to spin.” 

Unsurprisingly, Reggie gets stopped more than Luke does. There are a few moms and the odd dad stopping him to take pictures with their digital cameras and sign their Disney park maps. Reggie indulges them all, and Luke is only a little offended when he’s continually asked to take the pictures for them. Reggie claps him on the shoulder in an attempt to comfort him, but Luke sees the smug smile on his face. He’s only satisfied when they finally run into a teen boy wearing a _Sunset Curve_ shirt, and a few girls in their early 20s shrieking a little too much around him for Luke’s liking. Luke doesn’t treat them any differently, gives them all hugs and takes pictures with them, even signs one of their kneecaps, but he prefers fans who want to have genuine conversations with him instead of shrieking in his face. 

They’re almost at the Mad Tea Party when someone recognizes them both. It’s a couple probably around their age, telling them that they’re both huge fans of _Sunset Curve_ as well as Reggie, and that they _loved_ Reggie’s pop punk album that finally came out a couple of weeks ago. Luke loves it too, really. He plays it a lot more than he would ever admit, and _September Night_ still remains his favorite song. And judging by the way it topped the charts, a lot of people agree. 

“So, we knew you two are friends, of course. We saw the videos from that gig with _Simple Plan_ . We really wish we could’ve been there! But we were wondering… _Force of Nature_ and _September Night_ kind of… fit together, thematically. You don’t have to answer, but… did you write them about each other?” the girl asks, eyeing them curiously, and Luke exchanges a quick look with Reggie. Grinning, he turns back to the girl. Flynn hasn’t made him go through media training for nothing. 

“Well, that’s an interesting theory,” he says, humming. “What do you think, Reg?” 

“Very interesting, indeed. An excellent question. Did I write a love song about you, Patterson?” Reggie grins. Luke matches it and shrugs.

“I don’t know, man. Did I write one about you?” 

The couple laughs. 

“Alright, alright. We get it. You don’t want to say. I still think I’m right, though,” the girl says with a gleam in her eyes. Luke and Reggie both raise their hands as they shrug. 

“Can we expect a collab soon, then?” the guy asks. That one Luke gladly answers honestly. 

“Yes, actually! Keep your eyes peeled for that. We got a nice little feature coming for _Sunset Curve,_ I might be making an appearance or two on some country tunes soon, and then we got something new lined up as well. You won’t get bored,” Luke informs them. The couple seems genuinely delighted to hear that, and Luke, infected by their excitement, nudges Reggie in the side. 

“Awesome!” the guy says. They take a picture with the two, hug them, and then finally continue their journey towards the spinning teacups. 

“I really love this, but sometimes I do wish I could change my face for a day to avoid it,” Luke comments as they keep walking. “Or at least see your eyes,” he adds with a shrug. 

“Yeah, it’s difficult, isn’t it? I’m always happy to see those people, but at the same time I just want to spend time with you uninterrupted,” Reggie agrees, and Luke’s heart beats a little faster at the admission. He puts on a smirk and nudges Reggie’s shoulder with his own. 

“Aw,” he coos. Reggie rolls his eyes at him and starts walking a little faster. 

“We’re almost there. I bet I can beat you to it,” he challenges. Luke loves a challenge. Even if it involves racing through a Disney park as if he’s five years old and not an international rockstar. 

“You’re up, Peters,” Luke says, and starts down the pathway towards the Mad Tea Party. He’s dodging people left and right, accelerating his running and laughing stupidly, Reggie right on his heels. In the end he arrives there a split second sooner than Reggie, who slams right into him, almost sending them both tumbling to the ground. Luke feels exhilarated even as he pants, laughing as he tries to catch his breath. Reggie clings to his arm, trying to do the same. 

“I won!” Luke exclaims, jumping up and down a little as if he really is five years old. He does feel like it. 

“That means I get to pick the teacup. And I’m voting orange.” 

Reggie laughs. 

“Of course you are.” 

Luke feels dizzy when he can Reggie stumble back out of the Mad Tea Party. Turns out they both get a little hyper on this particular ride, so combining their strength, they spun their cup a little too fast for comfort. They’re laughing, though, clutching onto each other as they try to regain their balance. 

“I vote Splash Mountain next!” Luke exclaims when they’re back on the paved way. Reggie puts a fist in the air.

“Yes! I _love_ Splash Mountain,” he announced. Luke pokes him in the side, just because he can now that Reggie holds his arm up in the air. Squirming, he backs away as he swats at Luke’s hands. 

“Hey!” 

The red blotches are back on Reggie’s cheeks, and Luke wishes he could see his eyes. He’s sure they’re wide and filled with childlike wonder. Luke already knows he’s fucked anyway, so he might as well see his beautiful green eyes now. 

“Okay, bro, but let’s hit the gift shop first. I want to get you some Mickey Mouse ears,” Luke says and takes Reggie’s hand. He doesn’t even think about it. 

“You pick mine, I pick yours,” Reggie decides, and Luke figures this is probably a really bad idea after all. 

Sure enough, he ends up with a pair of glittery pink Minnie Mouse ears that look absolutely abhorrent with his orange beanie. Reggie, on the other hand, looks absolute adorable with his red polka-dot ones. Luke eyes himself in a mirror in the store, grumpily taking off his beanie in favour of the ears and tucking it in his jeans pocket. Reggie grins happily, and Luke decides it’s worth it looking quite so ridiculous just for that sight alone. Luke flicks Reggie’s nose, just because he feels like it and still doesn’t know how to control his impulses, and Reggie scrunches it up, looking a little startled. It’s completely adorable, and Luke feels the ice he’s walking on getting thinner by the minute. He thinks their friends’ plan might just be working out, and he’s not sure how he feels about that yet. 

They spend the rest of the day catching their favourite rides, getting soaked on Splash Mountain, laughing as they’re throwing water at each other, taking more pictures with fans and having a few nice chats with them, signing some park maps, eventually getting ice cream and having a bit of a moment when Luke wipes some ice cream from Reggie’s lips and licks it off his thumb, effectively making him blush. He’s sure someone caught a picture of it, and the tabloids will undoubtedly be on their case come morning, but he finds that he really doesn’t care. He just wants to spend time with Reggie. 

“Remember how I said I want to know everything about you?” Luke asks eventually, when they’re sitting on a bench eating popcorn and drinking milkshakes, because they can. Reggie chokes on a piece of popcorn as he turns to look at him, the context of Luke’s question obviously replaying in his mind. Luke claps him on the back and Reggie coughs, turning a little red in the face. He gives him a moment to recover, before saying, “I still want that. And I know a lot more now, but. How about we play a game?” 

Reggie eyes him curiously. 

“Alright?” he rasps, voice still a little rough from nearly choking on his popcorn. Luke grins. “What kinda game?” 

“Simple. I ask a question and we both have to answer it. Then you ask a question and we both have to answer it,” Luke explains. 

Reggie sips his milkshake and nods. 

“Okay, let’s see… We’ve talked about music a lot, but. Who would you say is your favourite artist of all time? And you can’t pick _me,”_ Luke adds, and Reggie snorts. Luke pretends to throw his imaginary long hair over his shoulder and puts on his most snooty expression. Reggie laughs, and his stupid joke was already worth it. 

“Easy,” Reggie says, _“Fleetwood Mac._ They were my first concert, too. I went to see them with my grandpa when I was ten. Which is my question, by the way. Now you can answer both.”

Luke chuckles. “A Stevie Nicks boy, are you?” 

“Wholeheartedly,” Reggie agrees. 

Humming, Luke smiles as he tries to decide, but in the end it’s no contest, really. 

“Okay. Mine is _Queen_ for sure, man. I got up super early to watch _Live Aid_ in ‘85 and when I saw them… that’s when I decided I wanted to learn guitar. Changed my life.” Luke thinks for a moment. “And my first show was _Madonna_. My mom liked her, so my dad got us tickets for Christmas when I was like… nine?” 

“Solid,” Reggie comments. “I remember watching _Live Aid_ as well. They went on at like 10 am Cali time, didn’t they? I think the whole world was reset when the whole Wembley stadium sang along to _Radio Ga Ga_ , to be honest.” 

Luke beams at him. 

“Yes! Exactly! That’s what I’ve been saying for years, man!” 

They’re quiet for a moment and Luke hums, trying to think of another question.

“Biggest fear?” he asks eventually. Reggie laughs. 

“Oh, so you go from music right to the depth of human psychology, huh?” 

Luke shrugs, a grin pulling at his lips. He really just wants to know what’s going on in Reggie’s head, and that includes every single strength, but also every single weakness. Reggie seems to think about it for a few moments as he chews on some popcorn. 

“I think it’s abandonment. That I’m just going to be all by myself one day. That everyone I love is going to leave me.” 

Luke nods, biting his lip.

“They’d be idiots to leave you,” he mumbles under his breath, but the smile on Reggie’s face indicates that he heard him. Luke finds he doesn’t mind. It’s true, after all. Reggie nudges his shoulder.

“Spill, Lucas. What’s yours?” 

Luke doesn’t have to think about it. He’s probably spent too much of his lifetime dwelling on it anyway. 

“Irrelevance. Going out without leaving a mark, without _connecting_ to people. Without leaving a legacy.” 

Reggie looks at him, and honestly, Luke doesn’t know how he’s managed to keep him at a distance for so long. It’s getting harder and harder by the second anyway. 

“But you already connected to millions of people. You won’t be forgotten any time soon, Patterson. Your music will live on.” 

Luke shrugs. 

“Yeah, maybe. The thought still terrifies me, though. Alex and I almost died when we were 17. We ate some bad hotdogs from a dodgy street vendor. Had our stomachs pumped just in time. In another universe we probably did die. I dunno, man. The thought’s been haunting me ever since.” 

Reggie stares at him wide eyed. And Luke gets that it’s not the most cheerful anecdote he has, but they survived, so it’s not that horrifying, is it? But Reggie keeps staring, and Luke begins to think that he’s having a stroke. 

“I-- I also got really bad poisoning from eating a bad hotdog once when I was 17,” he stutters out. “Kayla made me go to this gig at the Orpheum with her. I don’t actually know what band was playing that night, because I never made it in. There was this street vendor a few streets away, and that night someone spiked the condiments because they had some beef going on with the vendor and tried to make him go to prison. Well, I _had my stomach pumped just in time_ ,” Reggie quotes, “ It’s why I called my dog _Hotdog,_ actually. I used to joke that the universe tried to finally get rid of me when Kayla and I got into that accident after that weak ass first attempt at killing me. I mean, who dies from eating a dodgy hotdog, right?” 

Luke stares back at him, and a shiver runs down his spine. Something is itching under his skin, but he can’t put a name to the feeling. This has to be the strangest coincidence in the history of the universe. 

“Pretty sure we did in another universe,” he murmurs, shaking his head. “Dude. That was _our_ gig. It was going to be our showcase, our first big night. A sold out Orpheum show. And then Alex and I went to get street dogs, and you just told the rest of the story. What the _fuck,_ man. This is the freakiest thing I have ever heard, Reg, not gonna lie. I’m a little freaked out.” 

Reggie snorts and shrugs. He doesn’t seem nearly as fazed by this as Luke feels.

“Strange shit happens all the time, man. We're the same age, grew up in the same city, and frequented the same scenes,” he muses, “Sure, it’s freaky. But if you think about it, it’s not actually _that_ insane. Kayla is a huge fan of you guys, I’m not surprised it was your gig.” Reggie hums. Luke faintly wonders when Reggie became the rational one between the two of them. “So you believe in parallel universes, huh?” Reggie asks with a grin. And he’s back, Luke thinks. 

Luke takes a hand full of popcorn just to give his hands something to do. He hates fidgeting, and right now he very much feels like fidgeting. 

“Don’t you?” he asks. 

“Well, yeah,” Reggie tells him, finishing his milkshake, “But I’m _me._ I’m a bit of a nerd. You’re the famous international rockstar Luke Patterson. I guess I figured you aren’t the type to spend much time thinking about these kinda things.” 

Luke makes a face and pokes him in the side. Reggie squirms, nearly spilling popcorn everywhere. 

“I don’t. But I do _occasionally_. All I care about is making music, most of the time. But I got layers, bro. I’m also the one who asked you if you believe in fate on our first date, so you really shouldn’t be surprised,” he says with a shrug. Reggie’s eyebrows shoot up on his forehead as he grins, and Luke immediately realises his mistake. 

“Date?” 

Blushing, Luke shoves at Reggie’s shoulder. He ran headfirst into that one, really.

“Well, the bit on your roof was a little like a date, you gotta admit that,” he says casually, attempting to sound much more nonchalant than he feels. 

Reggie hums, a blush rising high on his cheeks as he smiles sheepishly. 

“Involved quite a lot of making out, you know, for a first date.”

Luke smirks, actively avoiding the memory that pushes to the front of his mind. It was hard to dodge, though, and quite insistent. 

“It did, didn’t it?” 

He knows they’re flirting. He knows they’re headed somewhere, like it’s inevitable. Like it was inevitable ever since Reggie stumbled upon him in a toilet stall at the VMA’s. Luke clears his throat and averts his eyes, sipping his banana milkshake instead. 

“What’s your next question, then?” he asks, effectively getting them back on track and away from juicy memories that might get them to a point they’re not ready for yet if they dwelled on them for too long. 

Reggie thinks for a few moments, before saying, “Best song you’ve ever written?” 

Luke keeps looking at his milkshake, chewing on the straw. 

“Easy,” he says. “There are two. _Unsaid Emily_ , and _Force of Nature_.” 

Reggie chuckles, and Luke knows he can’t meet his eyes now or he might just do something stupid and inadvisable. Like kissing him. 

“We’re so lame, man. I was gonna pick _September Night_ and _Sick Melodies_.” 

Luke does look up to meet Reggie’s eyes now. 

“Our song?” he asks quietly. _Sick Melodies_ is the title of the first song Luke and Reggie wrote together, and the first one on their upcoming EP as _Luke and Reggie_. Like _Simon and Garfunkel_. Only that they actually like each other, as Reggie pointed out when Julie first made that connection. 

“Yeah.” 

Luke snorts. 

“Sap,” he says, rolling his eyes. “But I do love that song. People are gonna go _insane_ over it, I’m calling it now.” 

Reggie nods, beaming excitedly. Luke really wants to kiss him. But he doesn’t. Not yet. 

“First they’ll get country Luke next week,” he says, wiggling his eyebrows. It took him ages to convince Luke to do a feature on a couple of country songs, but really, Luke has an extremely hard time saying no to Reggie. And he won’t admit it, but he actually had fun writing and recording them, and he genuinely does like those songs. 

“Yeah, I’m already wishing farewell to my reputation,” Luke says, sighing dramatically. 

Reggie pokes him in the side. 

“You can’t fool me. You _love_ those songs.” 

Luke laughs, but doesn’t confirm. He doesn’t think he needs to. Instead he tilts his head and smiles at Reggie. 

“Tell me about your first kiss.” 

Reggie makes a face. Not a pleasant memory, then. 

“It was a girl named Lisa, I was 15, and I didn’t really want to but she was kinda obsessed with me and I just went for it to get it out of my system. It was really weird and awkward, though. We were sitting on this park bench next to an old guy and his dog, and then it started raining… Yeah. I dated her for like a month before we broke up. What about you?” 

Luke shrugs. 

“It was Alex. Way before we dated, of course. We just decided we wanted to be each other’s firsts. It was cool.” 

_“Firsts?”_ Reggie asks, raising an eyebrow as a smirk is pulling at his lips. The emphasises the _s_ by dragging it all out. Luke blushes a little, which is completely ridiculous, considering he’s a 25 year old man. 

“Yeah,” he confirms. “Pretty much all of them.” 

“Your relationship with Alex is so unique, Luke,” Reggie chuckles, “Like what the hell?” 

Luke shrugs. 

“I mean, we dated for two years, so you already knew we slept together. Not sure why this changes anything,” he says with a laugh. 

Reggie shakes his head. 

“It doesn’t. I’ve just never seen anything like the friendship you two have.” 

Humming, Luke gets up from the bench and takes Reggie’s hand.

“Maybe. But I’ve also never seen anything like what you and I have either.” 

He pulls Reggie up, and just because he can, he presses a kiss to the corner of his mouth. He surprises himself with it, but doesn’t feel nearly as anxious about it as he expected when he pulls back.

“C’mon I wanna go to the Haunted Mansion.” 

Reggie looks flushed, but he beams the moment Luke mentions the Haunted Mansion. He jumps up and down like a small child, and it’s completely adorable. 

“I _love_ the Haunted Mansion!” 

Luke laughs and pulls him along. 

“I thought you might.” 

  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> follow me on tumblr [@sunsetcurveofficial](http://sunsetcurveofficial.tumblr.com)


	7. The Rain After

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm late again. This time my excuse is that I was listening to Jeremy's live thingy on that stupid app that Phil Lester also promoted and I hoped I never had to use again, lmao. And then Owen posted that dumb TikTok with Charlie??? What are these two DOING, honestly. They're the embodiment of chaos. I love them very much. 
> 
> ANYWAY. Thank you all for wishing me luck yesterday!! I really appreciated it. It went quite well, too, I think, and now there's only hoping they'll choose me. 
> 
> So this is probably the shortest chapter of the whole story, but it made sense that way. Tomorrow's will be a little longer again. That being said, I'm sorry. lol. Hope you enjoy!!

Luke and Reggie meet back up with their friends for dinner. They’re all giving them _looks,_ and Luke immediately feels an urge to leave again. 

“No, we didn’t make out on the Soarin’. You can stop staring now,” Luke says with a roll of his eyes and Reggie coughs. 

“But in the Haunted Mansion?” Alex asks. Luke glares at him. 

“No,” Reggie tells him, chuckling, “but Luke nearly made out with a girl he ran over.” 

Luke blushes _stupidly_ and turns his glare at Reggie. 

“He did _what?”_ Julie asks, and Reggie is laughing so hard, he wheezes when he speaks again. 

“He kind of tripped and when he tried to balance himself out he knocked this girl over and it was like a scene in one of those bad romantic comedies, because they were just lying there in a pile and staring at each other.” 

Luke groans. Usually he prides himself on how smooth he is in most situations life has to offer, but really, around Reggie he has a tendency to turn into a spluttering clutz. He still shudders when he remembers the incident when he fell down the stairs wearing the Reggie shirt, like a complete disaster of a human being. 

The girl looked so startled, and Luke immediately worried that he’d hurt her. Thankfully she was fine, though. 

In fact, “It’s the best day of her life, did you not hear her?” Luke says, hiding his embarrassment behind a grin. Reggie nods, clearly finding way too much enjoyment in Luke’s detriment. 

“Yeah, turns out she was a fan. When she realised it was _Luke_ who ran her over, she freaked out a little.”

Luke snorts. He can’t decide if he’s even more embarrassed because the girl recognized him. It certainly made things more awkward. 

“I think she thought that was her fanfiction moment, or something.” 

Reggie nods, giggling. Luke shakes his head at him, but can’t help smiling fondly. Reggie is ridiculous in his absolute delight, but Luke thinks he would probably make fun of him too, if their roles were reversed. 

“She thought you were gonna fall in love with her right there.” 

The worst part is that it’s true. The girl made the worst heart eyes at him, and Luke had to wriggle his arm out of her grasp after he helped her up from the ground. 

“It got even worse when her friend recognized you as well, though,” Luke says dryly, the corner of his mouth twitching again at the sight of Reggie’s _absolute delight_ as he recalls the incident from the Haunted Mansion. He does, however, wrinkle his nose now as he remembers the girl’s friend and her fawning over him when she realised he was _Reggie Peters._

“Yikes, yes. They thought they were gonna live the dream from this day forward. Long story short, Luke and I had to flee. And they think we’re together now.” 

Their friends are all staring at them as Reggie finishes the story, and then Alex snorts.

“Pretty sure the whole world already thinks that,” he says. Luke kicks him under the table. 

It was an emergency. Luke just wanted to get rid of the girls, so he told them that Reggie was his boyfriend. No big deal. He almost is, anyway. Luke isn’t stupid. He knows where they’re headed. He just needs to get over his hurt feelings and his pride. His pride most of all, really. He’s a little bit stupid like that, but at least he’s aware of it, he thinks. 

“Oh, yeah. I think there were some pa—” Reggie starts, blushing, and Luke kicks him as well to shut him up, giving him a warning glare. Their friends will see the pictures soon enough. There is no need to startle the chickens before it is time to do so. 

He manages to distract their friends by asking them about their days instead, and they get some peace for the remainder of their meal, at least. 

It lasts until they’re each two cocktails in and Julie pulls him aside to talk. Reluctantly, Luke lets himself be dragged outside, but Julie is nothing if not persistent. 

“C’mon Lukie-poo, what’s your problem?” Julie asks once they’re standing by a fountain outside their hotel. She shoves at his shoulder in a playful sort of gesture, and Luke rolls his eyes. “You _are_ in love with him, aren’t you?” 

Luke snorts. Julie is a lightweight, and it is obvious that she already feels a little tipsy from her two drinks. Drunk Julie never holds back, and tonight it appears she feels like grilling him. He can’t really blame her. 

But the thing is, Luke hasn’t allowed himself to think about this particular question in so long, it startles him when he does. He _knows_ the answer. He’s always known it. So he looks at Julie’s kind brown eyes for a moment too long and sighs.

“Yeah? I guess.” He shakes his head. It doesn’t feel right to hold things back from Julie. Luke doesn’t _need_ to guess. He knows. “Fuck it, yeah. Yeah, I am,” he admits. He lets out a startled sort of laugh and Julie smiles at him, reaching out to squeeze his arm. 

“So what’s holding you back? He’s clearly in love with you, too.” 

Luke knows that as well, of course. He’s not blind, and he’s not _that_ oblivious, even though Alex would probably disagree. But Reggie’s eyes speak for themselves, the sadness when Luke turned him down in the car, the spark when he wiped ice cream from his lips, the blush on his cheeks when Luke pressed a kiss to the corner of his mouth. The way Reggie smiles at him. Luke _knows._ But now he’s the one who’s scared, and too _proud_ for his own good. It’s what his mother always told him, too. 

“I just want to know him a little better,” Luke says quietly, and while that’s true, he also knows it’s an excuse that gets weaker every minute he spends with Reggie. He’s not surprised when Julie snorts and whacks his shoulder. She clearly doesn’t believe that either. 

“Please. As if you couldn’t do a whole presentation on him unprepared.” 

Luke crosses his arms in front of his chest and pouts. Julie makes it sound like he’s obsessed with Reggie Peters, and he doesn’t like it. Even though he is, probably. Maybe. A little bit. 

“I could not! Ask me anything about him and I probably won’t know the answer,” he says with a roll of his eyes. The worst thing, though, is that he isn’t even sure that he won’t know. He’s walking on thin ice, and he put himself there voluntarily. 

“Okay,” Julie says with a challenging gleam in her eyes, “Let’s test it, then. Who’s his favourite artist?” 

“Fleetwood Mac.” Damn it. 

“First concert?” 

“Fleetwood Mac.” This isn’t going very convincingly for him. Especially after their little trivia game this afternoon. 

“Any siblings?” 

“A brother.” 

“Favorite color?”

“Red.” Duh. 

“First kiss?” 

“A girl named Lisa when he was 15.” Luke knows he lost, answering her questions not only correctly, but also like a rapid fire. Julie chuckles. 

“His most popular song?”

Luke pokes his tongue out at her. 

“ _Home Is Where My Horse Is,”_ he says begrudgingly. “Give it a few years and it’ll be _September Night,_ though. I’m calling now. That song is an _insane_ banger.” 

Snorting, Julie pats his arm. She looks at him like he’s a little slow in the head and therefore deserving of her sympathy. 

“Yeah, and it’s about you, so you’re not biased at all.” 

Luke makes a face. His bias does not change the fact that it’s an amazing fucking song, alright. 

“You don’t _agree?”_

Julie raised her hands in surrender. 

“I didn’t say that.” 

They are quiet for a few moments and Luke watches the water coming out of the fountain, colliding with the water pooling at the bottom and flowing together as one. He knows Julie is eyeing him curiously. 

“It’s okay that you need time, Luke. I know he hurt you, so you’re scared it’ll happen again. Just… don’t let that stop you from having something incredible,” she says softly. “You’ve seen how long it took me and Flynn to finally get there, but now… the risk was so worth it, Luke. You gotta have a little faith sometimes.” 

Luke sighs. He catches Reggie laughing about something with their friends through the window in the corner of his eye. He turns to look at him, and his stupid butterflies go rampant. He gives himself two weeks at most before he’ll give in. His pride may be stubborn, but so is he. And he really wants Reggie Peters. 

“Yeah. Yeah, I know. I won’t.” 

Julie hugs him, and Luke bites his lip as he lets himself be held. It feels like he started the process of uncovering his buried feelings a little while ago, without even noticing at first, the fluttering already returning through the cracks, and he tries to be brave. 

+++

Reggie is a little bit drunk when they’re returning to their room that night. Luke has seen him drunk a couple of times before, so he knows that Reggie is an affectionate drunk, who very easily gets all emotional once he had a few too many, and today is no exception. _Except_ it’s worse, because Reggie seems _especially_ affectionate and emotional today, and now that their friends have all retired to their own rooms, it’s directed exclusively at Luke. 

For their entire elevator ride, Luke has an armful of Reggie rambling about pizza toppings and home decor of all things with his face pressed against Luke’s neck. His lips keep brushing against his skin, his arms wrapped around Luke’s neck, and Luke thinks it’s the longest elevator ride he’s ever been on. He’s feeling all fuzzy, barely able to form a coherent thought, never mind actually listen to Reggie’s incessant musings. 

It gets even worse when Reggie tries to kiss him as they’re stumbling down the hallway towards their room and _fuck_ if it isn’t tempting. Luke has a hard time pushing him away, and Reggie pouts, letting out a loud whining noise as Luke keeps dragging him along and finally shoves him into their room. As soon as he has closed the door behind them, Reggie is on him again, pushing him back until his back hits the wooden door. He presses featherlight kisses along Luke’s jaw, and Luke sighs. 

“Reg. Please, stop,” he says regrettably. And Reggie does stop, immediately pulling away and looking a little red in the face. 

“‘m sorry,” he mumbles, his hands fumbling with the seams of his flannel shirt. He looks so small standing there, and something shifts inside Luke’s chest. He pulls Reggie into a hug, wrapping his arms around his shoulders and holding him close, Reggie’s face pressed against his neck again. 

“It’s not that I don’t want to, Reg,” he says quietly, “But not like this. Not now.” 

“‘m so sorry, Luke,” Reggie whines, ignoring him, his lips brushing against Luke’s neck again as he does. Luke shivers, but keeps his arms firmly wrapped around his friend. “I’m a horrible person.” 

“What?” Luke gently pushes Reggie away just enough to be able to look at his face. “You’re not-- come on, Reg, what are you _on_ about? You’re _not_ a horrible person.” 

There is a single tear spilling over and rolling down Reggie’s cheek, and Luke feels his heart break a little bit. He reaches out to wipe it away with his thumb and gives Reggie a small smile. 

“Don’t cry on me, man, you know I can’t handle it,” he jokes softly, and Reggie lets out a laugh that sounds like it’s half a sob. Luke still counts it as a win. 

“I’m sorry I fucked this all up,” Reggie says quietly, averting his eyes. “You’re the best person I’ve ever met, Luke.” 

Luke bites his lip, his hands twitching on Reggie’s arms. He’s still holding him at a small distance, but close enough that it wouldn’t take much to close it and connect their lips. But Luke told Reggie to stop, and he stands by that. A drunken hookup is not how he wants this to go, even though his impulses tell him otherwise. He’s surprised by his own control over them this time. 

“You didn’t— I just need time, Reg. Okay? We’re friends. You don’t need to apologise anymore. I know you’re sorry, but it’s time to move on, alright?” 

Reggie nods sadly, staring into a corner of the room as if it holds all the answers he’s looking for. 

“Move on. Right, yeah,” he says, another tear falling, and Luke thinks he might have chosen the wrong words. He’s pretty sure Reggie thinks Luke is rejecting him for good, when that’s really the last thing he’s doing. 

“I don’t mean—” he starts, then shakes his head as he takes in Reggie’s watery eyes, blown pupils, and his messy hair. “Let’s talk about this when we’re both sober, okay?” 

Reggie rubs a hand over his face and shrugs, nodding. He’s quiet for a long moment, and Luke wishes he could make his tears stop falling. There is no need to cry now; he knows they’re finally on the right path together. 

“Can I—” he starts, and Luke meets his eyes, raising an eyebrow. “Can you kiss me again just this once?” 

Reggie’s voice is barely more than a whisper, and it sounds heart shattering, almost like they’re saying goodbye for real, or something. Which is ridiculous, right? That’s not what Luke tried to say at all. 

“Reggie, I didn’t—” he attempts, but Reggie puts a finger on his lips to shut him up. 

“Please?” he says instead, and Luke almost melts. There is no way he can say no to that if Reggie looks at him like that. He knows it, so he’s not trying to fight it. His impulse control was weak to begin with, and it stands no chance against this particular request. He nods slowly and reaches out to tilt Reggie’s face up with his fingertips. Stepping closer, he lets his eyes flicker from Reggie’s green ones down to his lips, taking a deep breath before closing the distance. He brushes his lips gently against Reggie’s, then pushes a little bit closer and kisses him longingly. He sighs into it, his hands on each side of Reggie’s face as he keeps him close. Reggie whimpers and kisses back with so much unrestrained passion, Luke nearly melts on the spot. It’s been so long. Almost a year since they last kissed properly up on Reggie’s roof, after they’d only known each other for a few hours. So much has happened since then. Luke feels warm all over, and he never wants to stop. Their lips still fit together perfectly, and Reggie tastes like fruity cocktails and salty pretzels. The fluttering in his stomach spreads and makes his skin tingle all over.

Luke loves Reggie so much. He realises it with a start and pulls away, eyes wide as he lets his hands drop from his face and steps back. It’s not new. It’s not like he didn’t know. But the intensity overwhelms him all over again, because it has increased tenfold now that he actually knows Reggie. 

Reggie stares at him, and Luke swears he’s carrying all the sadness in the world in his eyes. He wishes for nothing more than his smile back. He doesn’t know what else to do, doesn’t find the right words within him, so he sings. He sings one of the songs they wrote together as he pushes Reggie further into the room and gestures for him to get ready for bed. He keeps singing until they both fall asleep, dressed in soft band shirts and boxer shorts and wrapped into a single blanket, Luke’s arm slung around Reggie’s waist. There are a few more tears to wipe away, and Luke falls asleep knowing they have a lot to talk about in the morning.

+

When Luke wakes, he feels cold. Like something is missing. The sun is shining onto his face, and he squints as he blinks his eyes open. He needs a few seconds to regain his orientation, and then all the events from the previous day and especially the previous night catch up to him. He opens his eyes all the way, turning, expecting Reggie to still be asleep and looking all _cute_ \- but the bed next to him is empty. Luke frowns and reaches for his mobile phone to look at the time. It’s just past nine. Maybe Reggie has gone to breakfast without him, he thinks, ignoring the unpleasant twist in his stomach. It gets even worse when he realises that Reggie’s bags are gone. That stupid, _stupid_ man. 

Groaning, Luke dresses quickly and heads down to meet his friends, who are already chatting away at a table in the corner, but Reggie is nowhere to be seen. Luke didn’t really expect anything else, but it still hurts. And the worst part is that he knows he’s to blame too, this time. Reggie has most definitely misunderstood what Luke told him, has somehow interpreted a goodbye into something that wasn’t one. It was only a _see you later_ , not a goodbye. Luke should have insisted on making that clear, he knows, but the truth is that he is just as shit at communicating his feelings as Reggie is. 

“Fuck!” he swears as he flops down onto an empty chair next to Alex. All four heads immediately snap up to him. 

“Where’s Reg?” Willie asks. Luke groans, throwing his hands up in the air in an exasperated motion. 

“That idiot _left._ He— he misunderstood what I said when we got back to the room last night. I think he thought I was saying goodbye to him, or some shit. Or, like, goodbye to this… this _love_ thing between us.” 

Luke bites his lip and blushes a little. He supposes there is no point in not calling it what it is anymore. 

Alex sighs. He exchanges looks with Julie, Luke knows he is, even though he’s too busy picking apart a napkin to look up at them. 

_“What_ did you _say?”_ Alex asks, exasperatedly dragging out his words. 

Luke shrugs, sighing as rips further into the napkin.

“Something about moving on? But I meant he needs to move on from this guilt he’s still carrying around from the Kayla thing. I said he needs to stop apologising, because we’re friends and it’s time to move on. But I also said we’ll talk in the morning! He was so drunk, I didn’t want to… ah, _man._ ” Luke throws the napkin across the table, and it lands in Flynn’s lap, while pieces of it are raining down onto the table between them. 

“Hey!” she complains.

“Luuuuke!” Julie scolds, reaching across the table to shove at his shoulder. 

“I was going to clarify, but he wouldn’t let me, and then we kissed and I kind of-- stopped functioning.” 

“Wait,” Alex interjects. “You kissed?”

Luke sighs. He feels warm all over again when he remembers the feeling of Reggie’s soft lips against his. It had been so long. And Reggie tasted like fruity cocktails and salty tears and pretzels and somehow it couldn’t have been more perfect for what it was. For a _see you the fuck later when you’re sober and I finally get over myself and accept the shit you put us through, babe._

“Yes. But I think he thought it was like, a goodbye kiss or some shit. One last time, I don’t know.” 

“So you kissed, and Reggie thought it was a goodbye kiss, and then you just-- went to sleep?” Alex asks, sounding incredulous, his eyebrows raised high on his forehead. 

“Pretty much. I didn’t know what to say, so I started singing him our songs until we fell asleep. He looked so sad, and he was so drunk.” 

Luke does realise how ridiculous that sounds, and he wants to knock his own head onto the table. Why didn’t he clarify? “How was I supposed to know he was just gonna make a run for it!” 

Willie sighs, pulling out his mobile phone. It is the first noise Luke has heard from him since he asked about Reggie’s whereabouts. 

“I’m sending him a message,” he says. “To be honest, bro, I’m not surprised. Reggie has always been a runner. It’s why he’s not on speaking terms with his parents.”

Luke sighs, rubbing a hand over his face. That makes sense, he thinks, and he hates it. He should have known. He should have made sure Reggie knows how much he wants him. 

“Let me know if he replies,” Luke says, feeling like a complete ass. It’s quiet for a few long moments, and Luke steals Alex’s napkin to pick apart. He doesn’t really feel like spending another day at Disney anymore, especially when Reggie’s not there with him. There is no point, when he could just as well go home and write a song about what a complete _idiot_ he is. 

“I’m gonna catch a taxi home later,” he tells his friends, “But you guys have fun today, alright?” 

Alex squeezes his forearm, and Luke shifts to let himself fall against his chest as Alex puts an arm around his shoulders. None of them try to talk him into staying, and Luke is thankful for it. 

“You’re hopeless, bro,” he says, soothingly stroking his arm. Luke scoffs.

“Yeah. I know.” 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> follow me on tumblr [@sunsetcurveofficial](http://sunsetcurveofficial.tumblr.com)


	8. On a Road to the Stars

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm super early today because I got two friends coming over tonight (being safe of course!! covid is still very real and should not be taken lightly.) (but we also can't sit around alone all the time without going mad) and I totally intend on getting a little drunk, lol. 
> 
> So, early chapter for you. Time for Luke to set some things right, isn't it?
> 
> IMPORTANT QUESTION: technically, after this chapter there is only one chapter + the epilogue left. BUT. the last chapter, as of now, is like SUPER long. like 9k words long. and i could make a cut in the middle. it would still work that way. now. do you want it all at once tomorrow (+ the epilogue) or do you want another smaller dose tomorrow and the finale on monday? please let me know!!

Reggie fled all the way to New York to see his grandparents. Luke wants to hate him a little bit, but he can’t even fully blame him. He knows he fucked up this time. But he is mad, too. Because Reggie just left without saying a word, and now he won’t even take his calls or answer his messages. He even ignored him on the day their country song was released. The pictures of them at Disney were all over the tabloids the week after their trip as well, and now the whole world just assumes they’re dating, when right now it couldn’t be further from the truth. A few journalists tried to reach out to him, but Luke ignored all of them. He doesn’t care what they think. 

He spends his time writing angry songs, trying not to scream in frustration every minute of every day. He’s angry at himself and he’s angry at Reggie, and he feels helpless and he’s always _hated_ feeling helpless. He knows Reggie won’t come back to him, so he needs to fucking get over himself, swallow his pride, and explain what he meant. He _knows_ this. But it still takes him three weeks until he finally snaps. He calls Willie, deciding that he needs to act on his impulsiveness if he wants Reggie back in his life. And he really, _really,_ wants him back in his life. He misses him. It’s strange, going from seeing him every day to not seeing him at all. Luke finished some of their songs in his absence, but it feels all wrong to do it without him. Especially because it’s all so unnecessary. They’re _fine._ They were just on the verge of something, and then Luke had to control his impulses the _one time_ he really shouldn’t have, and Reggie had to run like a scared chicken again because of it. Bunch of idiots, they are. 

Willie only takes a few rings to pick up the phone. 

“Luke?” he asks, the surprise audible in his voice. 

“Willie, great! Is Reggie still in New York?”

Willie chuckles, and Luke rolls his eyes. 

“Yeah, he is,” he says knowingly, “You want his grandma’s address?” 

“Yes!” Luke says a little louder than necessary. He always gets loud when he’s impatient, and he’s _so_ impatient right now, it’s bubbling under his skin and making him all jumpy. 

“Bro. Finally! I’m gonna send you a message,” Willie tells him. Luke lets out a breath he didn’t know he was holding. He’s so running off to New York to get his man back, as Julie puts it, and he’s not even embarrassed about it. 

And that’s how Luke actually ends up on a fucking flight to New York City. To tell a man that he still wants him in his life and that he wants to be with him. Eventually. Luke thinks it’s probably going to take them a little longer now that they made complete asses of each other. Clearly they have some trust and communication issues to work through first. Luke really hates how mature he is about this, though. He would much rather be impulsive again and just kiss Reggie’s face off upon seeing him. But the thing is that he wants to keep him long term, he really does, and he’s scared of losing him for good if they fuck this up _again_ by jumping headfirst into something they aren’t ready for. He really, really doesn’t like being so mature and _responsible_ about this. It’s _boring._ He doesn’t even begin to think about how utterly terrifying it is that he is so serious about Reggie. He knows it won’t lead him anywhere. First he needs to get him back, anyway. 

Reggie’s grandma opens the door when Luke rings the bell of her Manhattan apartment. She’s short and sort of round, and has the same kind green eyes that Reggie has. Her long grey hair is pulled up into a bun, and she’s wearing a red flannel of all things. Luke nearly chuckles, because it’s so obvious how close Reggie feels to her. 

“Hello dear, how can I help you?” she asks. Luke adjusts his orange beanie and shoves his hands deep into the pockets of his jeans as he pulls up his shoulders. He’s an international rockstar, why the hell does he feel so nervous talking to someone’s grandma all of a sudden? That’s right. It’s because he’s fucking hopelessly in love with her grandson. 

“Um, hello Mrs Peters,” he says, “I’m Luke. Is Reggie here?” 

“Luke! Oh, yes, indeed. I have heard _SO_ much about you.” Mrs Peters eyes him up and down. “What a handsome young man you are. I can see why my Reggie takes such a liking to you.” Luke blushes. Why is he blushing? He hears this all the time. But he thinks it might be related to the fact that she knows how Reggie feels about him. Which means that Reggie told her. Or at least that he mentioned him enough for her to know. 

“Oh, well, thank you,” he says with a smile, trying to regain his confidence. He knows how to charm a grandma, alright. 

“Well, come in, dear.” She ushers him inside, and Luke steps past her and into a bright, spacey Manhattan house. “Reggie, love! You got a visitor,” she calls. Luke braces himself. 

Reggie appears at the top of the stairs a few moments later, looking confused. His hair is all mussed, and he is wearing navy blue sweatpants and a _Sunset Curve_ shirt, of all things. Luke is pretty sure it’s the one they got at that thrift shop a little over a year ago now. He snorts when he recalls the last time they saw each other again after their big falling out, when Luke made a complete ass of himself by falling down the stairs wearing his Reggie shirt. This feels oddly reminiscent of that, even though Reggie has yet to fall down the stairs. 

There are a few of his butterflies coming to life again, and Luke lets them. He’s long given up on trying to get rid of that particular infestation.

Reggie’s eyes widen when he spots Luke. 

_“Luke?”_ he squeaks, self-consciously tugging his loose hair behind his ears. “What-- why are you-- what are you doing here?” 

Luke smiles at him, and then snorts, shaking his head and crossing his arms in front of his chest. 

“What am _I_ doing here? What are _you_ doing here, you big idiot? You look like shit, man, and for _what?”_

Luke thinks he probably sounds a little too harsh, but it’s the truth anyway. They’re both dumbasses, but Reggie is the bigger one of them right now. If he didn’t run away… well, Luke doesn’t really want to think about what they could be doing now. 

“Why don’t you two sit down and talk, hm?” Mrs Peters says after Reggie stared at Luke in silence a little too long, mouth opening and closing like a fish on dry land. “I’m gonna head out to pick up your grandpa from his yoga class.” 

Reggie is slowly coming down the stairs as Mrs Peters starts getting ready to go out. He’s eyeing Luke warily as he nods and waits a few long, awkward moments until his grandma is gone before he blurts, “What the fuck, Luke?” 

Sighing, Luke rolls his eyes. They’re still standing in the hallway, maybe a foot apart and staring each other down like two wild animals. This is already going great, Luke thinks.

“Why did you _leave,_ you great big dumbass? I can’t believe you. I said we’ll talk when you’re sober, or did I not?” 

Reggie scoffs, crossing his arms in front of his chest.

“Yeah, I really didn’t need the extra speech for you to let me down gently. I got the message, alright.” 

Luke wants to kick him. 

“I did _not_ let you down! Not gently nor otherwise. You got it all wrong, dude, but you wouldn’t let me _speak._ What I _meant_ was that you need to move on from the mistake you made. Stop apologizing. I didn’t mean you need to move on from _me!”_

Reggie stares at him, looking completely taken aback as Luke raises his voice. He’s just so frustrated. Reggie does that fish thing again, and there’s color rising to his cheeks, leaving signature pink blotches behind. 

“What?” he breathes. 

“You heard me, Reg. We weren’t saying _goodbye_ , you dork, unless _you_ wanted that. We were just saying _see you later._ I wasn’t trying to _break up_ with you. We both know where we were headed, Reg. Why did you have to go and run?” 

Reggie blinks. He looks like he’s about to suffer a stroke. 

“You _weren’t?”_

Luke throws his hands up in the air and shakes his head.

“No. And I realise I fucked up too, because I didn’t insist on clarifying before we went to sleep, and I’m _sorry_ , but _you—_ for fuck’s sake, Reg.” 

Taking a step towards him, Reggie looks him in the eyes for a long moment, processing Luke’s words, and then he groans. 

“I’m such an idiot,” he finally says, “A complete _moron_. I genuinely thought you said we had to move on from… well, from this _thing_ that we have.”

Reggie shakes his head and laughs a little hysterically. Luke feels that sentiment. 

“And you’re sure you _still_ want this after I put you through this next drama and gave you the silent treatment, because I was nursing my broken heart that you didn’t actually mean to break?” 

Luke steps into Reggie’s space and cups his cheek in his hand. 

“Dude, I just took a flight to New York for you. This is some Rachel Green bullshit right here. You better not question it again,” he says, meeting his eyes. The _I love you_ itches under his skin, pushing to get out, but Luke stomps on it. There is a time for that, he knows, and it’s not now. 

“I won’t,” Reggie breathes, cheeks pink. “I’m so sorry. We’re not very good at this, are we?” 

Luke chuckles and pats his cheek. 

“Nah, but it’s fine. We’re totally winging it.” 

Reggie smiles, and Luke really wants to kiss him, but he doesn’t. Not yet. 

“Remember when Alex and Willie went screaming in a museum on their first date? I totally feel like screaming in a museum right now,” Reggie says. 

Luke snorts. Screaming in a museum sounds exactly like what he needs to get all his pent up frustration out. 

“Same, bro. Not sure we’d be welcome to scream in any NYC museums, though,” he says, considering it, “The Empire State building, however…” He smirks as an idea forms in his mind.

“Oh! Good thinking,” Reggie says, “And I might actually know of a way to get us in after closing hours.” 

Luke grins. “Okay. Let’s get ice cream, hit some record stores and thrift shops around town, and then scream on the Empire State building.” He pauses, eyeing Reggie carefully. “And then you will go back to L.A. with me to finish that EP of ours?” 

Reggie smiles and nods enthusiastically. He looks so happy, it does all sorts of funny things to Luke’s chest. His butterflies seem to like it, anyway. 

“Yes. To all of it.” 

Luke presses a kiss to the corner of Reggie’s mouth. His impulse control is still on the weaker side, really. No amount of maturity can ever make up for it. 

_“Sweet!_ It’s a date,” Luke says and wiggles his eyebrows. There is no point in not calling it what it is anymore, he thinks.

+

Luke is still going on and on about the rare red coloured 1994 first pressing vinyl copy of _Stranger Than Fiction_ by _Bad Religion_ he found in a record store in Brooklyn when he and Reggie are on the elevator up to the top of the Empire State building. Reggie is friends with a few people there - or rather, they’re huge fans of his, and nearly fell over themselves to make it possible for them to go up after hours. 

Reggie keeps staring at him, smiling as he rambles on, and Luke finds that he quite enjoys the attention. They had a good day, trying on ugly clothes and fancy ballroom gowns in thrift shops, browsing through records, signing their own, and checking out some vintage instruments, getting ice cream in Central Park and petting some stray cats in a shelter, before getting dinner at Reggie’s favorite Burger place. 

They learned a lot, too. For one, they found out that Reggie looks stunning in a red ballroom dress, and Luke promptly asked the owner of the shop to turn up some music so he could twirl Reggie around their provisional dance floor in front of the changing rooms while wearing a black velvet tuxedo and a top hat. They ended up in a laughing pile of limbs on the floor, when Reggie managed to trip over the seams of his own dress and dragged Luke right down with him. Luke also found out that Reggie is partial to reading when he drags him into a small bookshop, and that he actually reads quite a lot of books when he’s not making music. He’s a passionate fan of the Harry Potter series, and is impatiently waiting for the fifth book to come out. Luke learned that when Reggie found a first edition copy of the first book and promptly dove into a half hour long ramble about it. Luke hasn’t read Harry Potter and knows nothing about it, but he listened anyway and couldn’t wipe the smile off his face when he saw the excitement on Reggie’s face. 

Luke is still buzzing with all it now, the laughter bubbling under his skin. He feels warm and light, and he’s so glad he followed his impulsiveness to New York.

It’s nearly 1 am when they reach the top of the building, and Luke grabs Reggie’s hand to drag him outside. The September night air is cool, and Luke shivers a little in his sleeveless hoodie. Reggie notices and lets go of Luke’s hand to remove his red flannel from his hips. He hands it to him and Luke is about to tell him he’s fine, but thinks better of it and takes it anyway, putting it on under his sleeveless hoodie. He’s glad he’s put on a black one today, so at least he’s still matching. The flannel smells like Reggie, too, and Luke feels a lot warmer than the piece of clothing alone can possibly be responsible for. 

“Better?” Reggie asks with a grin.   
“Much,” Luke admits with a laugh, “But don’t tell anyone. My credibility as edgy rockstar is at stake here.” 

“And here I was thinking you already lost that when our country song came out last week.” Reggie stops, clearly having a lightbulb moment. “ _Oh!_ We should check the Hot 100 later.” 

Luke smiles at him. Of course he already checked it on his flight from LAX. He’s been waiting for the right moment to tell Reggie, and then he forgot somewhere in the middle of ice cream and ball room dresses. 

“We got a top 10, babe,” he says softly. Reggie’s eyes widen. 

“Wait, really?” Luke nods. 

“Yeah! I had enough time to check them on my flight over here.”

Reggie starts jumping up and down excitedly, and it’s so adorable, Luke pulls him into a hug and starts jumping along with him. 

“Look at you. Luke Patterson making country music cool again,” Reggie says. “I haven’t had a country song in the top 10 since _Home Is Where My Horse Is._ ” 

Luke snorts. 

“I’m sure our Disney pics helped some with the publicity, _boyfriend,_ ” he jokes. Reggie pulls out of his arms and shoves him, laughing. 

“You just wait until I actually snatch that title.” 

He sounds and looks cockier than Luke has ever seen him before, and really, staring is all he can do until Reggie snaps him back out of it by pulling him to the edge of the roof. 

“Close your mouth, Lucas. Pretty sure there are flies up here. Or moths.” He shudders. “Although I love moths. They’re so cool. Snacking them not so much, though, I’d guess.” 

Luke barks out a laugh. 

“Did you just say moths are cool?” 

Reggie blushes, but apparently decides to own it by poking his tongue out at him.

“Shut up. You can open your mouth to scream instead.” 

Luke shakes his head, snorting as he eyes him fondly. He can’t wait to tell him how much he loves him, really. It feels so long overdue. 

“Reggie Peters. What happened to you?” 

Reggie shrugs and grins. 

“You,” he says simply. 

And then they scream their lungs out on top of the Empire State building and break down into fits of laughter right after. And Luke thinks this might just be his new favourite September night. 

+++ 

“Where are you staying?” Reggie asks when they’re leaving the Empire State Building and start walking aimlessly down the street. It’s almost 2am, and the city around them still feels alive with lights and noises. It’s different than LA in so many ways. But Luke has always liked NYC, has always liked its energy and the way anything seems possible on those streets. He still feels their day in his bones, something close to happiness blooming in his chest, that thrill of endless possibilities making him want to dance down the street. The screaming really did help him let go of some of his pent up frustration, he thinks. He feels like he can do anything now. 

“Just some random hotel on the Upper West Side,” Luke tells him, “I just let Flynn book something for me last minute, I didn’t really care what it was.” 

Reggie hums. Luke knows he wants to say something, suggest something, but keeps closing his mouth and turning away again. The fish thing again, only this time he keeps moving his head along to it, and it looks ridiculously adorable. Luke snorts and grabs Reggie’s hand, lacing their fingers and giving it an encouraging squeeze.

“Come on, Reg. Out with it.” 

Reggie sighs and keeps his eyes ahead on the sidewalk. 

“I— don’t actually have any keys to my grandparents' place. I never stay out this late when I’m here and I’m not here often enough in the first place, so… I’m not too keen on waking them up in the middle of the night to let me in.”

Luke isn’t sure what he expected, but this wasn’t it. He stares at Reggie for a few long moments before bursting into laughter. 

“You can just say you want a cuddle, Reg,” he says, teasingly raising his eyebrows. Reggie blushes just the way Luke expected him to, and it’s _delightful._

“I don’t— I mean, I _do—”_ Reggie stutters, then stops and snorts. “You know what, Patterson? Yes. Yes, I want a cuddle. Will you please let me sleep in your bed tonight?” 

Luke’s eyes widen in surprise, and he blinks several times before he manages to pull rather abruptly at Reggie’s hand that he is still holding, making him stumble right into him. He laughs, then shoves Reggie away again but keeps their hands locked. 

“Nice one, Peters. My answer is yes, you may share my bed tonight.” 

Something tingles under Luke’s skin, and he wants to kiss Reggie so badly, he’s almost overcome with the urge. But he doesn’t want to push them too far too fast again, so he merely pushes Reggie up against a building on the side and hugs him close, burying his face in his neck. Reggie gasps softly and hugs him back like his life depends on it. Luke almost feels like he’s bursting with his feelings for him. The only thing holding him back is that itchy feeling of not wanting to be the one who gives in first working hand in hand with that last fraction of fear. He wants to do this the right way this time, and jumping in with all he has didn’t work out last time, so he’s more careful now.

“Luuuke,” Reggie whines. Luke has a feeling he feels much the same way. “I have so many things on my mind that I’m not sure I can tell you.” 

“Try me,” Luke says quietly, his lips brushing against Reggie’s skin. He smells like peach body spray and thrift shop clothes when he inhales softly. Reggie shivers ever so slightly in his arms. 

“I— I want you so much. I don’t know how I ever managed to stay away from you,” he rasps out, and Luke takes a deep breath. He doesn’t say anything and just starts kissing Reggie’s neck instead. It’s probably a bad idea. But how is he supposed to stop himself after an admission like that? 

“You know how I feel about you, don’t you?” Reggie asks around a soft moan when Luke reaches the spot just beneath his earlobe. Luke hums. Of course he knows. He thinks he’s always known. Even when Reggie lied and cheated, there was never once a doubt in his mind that Reggie has feelings for him. Feelings that match the ones he has for him in return. 

“When I was a kid, I used to play house with my childhood best friend. After that I never wanted to play house with anyone again, especially after it was going so dreadfully with Kayla. But now I think…”

Luke snorts, pulling away a little to give Reggie a look. 

“You want me to be your housewife?” he asks with a raised eyebrow and a smirk on his lips. Reggie punches him on the shoulder. 

“Maybe _I_ want to be the housewife. I’m a dreadful cook, though. I could order you pizza every day.” 

Luke laughs and takes Reggie’s hand again, dragging him away from the wall. 

“We’d both get bored in a life like that, let’s be real,” Luke says, a smile dancing around his lips. He gets what Reggie means. He feels similarly serious about him, and it’s a little bit terrifying. 

“Oh, thank _god. So_ bored. But I guess what I was trying to say is that if it was with you, I wouldn’t mind so much.” 

Luke turns to smile at Reggie. 

“Yeah. I get that. I don’t think I would mind so much either.” 

Reggie giggles. 

“Luke Patterson, such a romantic. Who would’ve thought?” 

They pass a karaoke club door, and a few slightly wonky notes of _Force of Nature_ come wafting out. Luke gives Reggie a look, and then they both burst into laughter. 

“I take that back. _Everyone_ knows,” Reggie wheezes, and Luke shoves him. The truth is, he _knows_ , too. He’d really like to be all cool and unbothered, but he’s hopeless, really. 

+++

They don’t kiss when they get back to Luke’s hotel room. They can’t stop touching each other either, though. There are hugs and featherlight kisses on necks and jawlines, and soft touches on softer skin, fingertips just beneath the hem of their shirts and on their bare arms. When they’re both down to their band shirts and boxers, Luke pushes Reggie down into the mattress and lets his hands wander all over his body while he presses his lips against the skin on his neck and all over his face, taking his time. Reggie turns them around after a little while and does the same to Luke, and it feels crazy intimate, even though it’s probably the most innocent make out session Luke has ever found himself in. He isn’t even sure if what they’re doing can be considered making out.

When he feels Reggie getting more sluggish in his movements, Luke gently pushes him off and they lie next to each other, lacing their fingers as they look at the dark ceiling, eyes starting to feel heavy. 

“I can’t believe I’m saying this, but… let’s take this slow, yeah? Like really slow. I think I need more time,” Luke says quietly, disrupting the quiet night. They haven’t really spoken much since they came into the room. 

“When did you forgive me?” Reggie asks instead of replying to Luke’s quiet request. Luke turns on his side to look at him, even though he can barely make out his face in the dark, only a sliver of moonlight coming in through the curtains. 

“When I saw that you did everything in your power to try and fix your mistakes. I’m quick to forgive, Reg. I always have been. It’s not hard for me to hand out second chances.”

Reggie turns onto his side too, facing Luke much like that first night on his rooftop. Luke feels something flutter on his insides when he remembers that. Reggie reaches out and traces the lines of Luke’s face with his fingertips. 

“But I hurt you,” he breathes, voice low. 

Luke closes his eyes and sighs, trying to find a way to put his thoughts into words. It would be so much easier to write him a song. 

“Yeah. You did. Sometimes people fuck up. It’s not like you had any bad intentions on purpose. You and I… it’s not like you planned that. And I get that you were scared. What you’ve been through… I can’t even imagine, man. It’s not that hard to forgive what you did, though, Reg. You know, compared to other bad shit people do. You really need to stop feeling guilty. I guess that you _do,_ only shows that you’re a good person, but I can tell it’s holding you back. Maybe… maybe you need more time, too.” 

Reggie lets out a breath, his hand dropping from Luke’s face. He almost misses it the moment it’s gone. 

Luke ponders his own words for a moment, realising that it’s true. It wasn’t hard to forgive Reggie. It’s harder to get over his pride, and to heal the aching parts inside him that Reggie hurt with his actions, or lack thereof. It takes more time. Forgiveness is the first step of that process, and they’re long past that, though. 

“That was a good speech, dude,” Reggie says around a chuckle. Luke punches him on the shoulder. 

“Thank you, Luke,” Reggie adds quietly. Luke squeezes his hand and pulls him close to his chest, wrapping his arms around him. It doesn’t take them long to fall asleep. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> follow me on tumblr [@sunsetcurveofficial](http://sunsetcurveofficial.tumblr.com)


	9. Calm After The Storm

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> You guys!!! Here it is. The grand finale. And we're going all out in so many ways in this one. I really really hope you enjoy it as much as I enjoyed writing it!! It's so long, but I wanted to include every single detail that's in this chapter. And the silly little epilogue, of course. Didn't it just line up perfectly with Valentine's day?? Haha I almost wish I had PLANNED that, but it's really just a cool coincidence.
> 
> Thank you all so so much for sticking with this fic these week and always leaving so many amazing comments and thoughts for discussion. It was so fun to go on this journey with you all, and I can't wait for the next. So much fun!! 
> 
> Now, enjoy. xx

Two weeks after they returned from New York, Luke knows he and Reggie are on the verge of something. They’ve been walking that line for so long now that it feels long overdue, and he finds that he’s not that afraid anymore. Not that he was ever  _ that _ afraid in the first place. He’s Luke Patterson, for crying out loud. He’s impulsive and bold, he doesn’t run and hide. Except maybe he has, a little bit. He’s aware. Lying to himself isn’t something he really does, either. There is no point in it when he  _ knows  _ the truth anyway, is there?

But he also knows he’s forgiven Reggie a long time ago, he’s even told him so that night in New York, and it’s still mostly his stupid pride that he doesn’t seem to be able to get over holding him back now. That, and his weird new _maturity_ thing. He still doesn’t like it. It’s just so much more fun to be impulsive. His said spontaneous trip to New York to get Reggie back home has only served to prove that again. It’s itching under his skin now, and he’s been looking for a way to soothe the itch, to do something he probably shouldn’t do. Something fun. So tonight, he plans to take Reggie to a _Simple Plan_ gig he spontaneously got tickets for when he saw the poster downtown. He was immediately reminded of the night they met, and the familiar fluttery feeling in his chest just propelled him on. Plus, he really wants to meet the band again. They’re cool dudes, after all. 

It might just do the trick, he thinks. He’s taking Reggie on a date. Nothing too romantic. Just two bros hanging out, having fun, reminiscing the first night they met.  _ Easy. _

It can’t be more than that in his head, because no matter what, Reggie did hurt him, he made him feel stupid about his feelings, then hurt him again by running away, and Luke _knows_ he won’t be the one to give in first. He can’t be. He’s stubborn and proud and it’s been too long for him to take the first step now, no matter how he feels about Reggie. His impulsiveness is at constant war with his pride lately, but in the end his pride always wins, supported by that sense of _maturity_ that makes him more impatient by the day. Why does taking it slow have to be so boring? And what does it _mean_ to be mature about this anyway? That he wants to settle down and buy a white picket fence with Reggie? Because _that_ sounds dreadful, he thinks, and they’ve already established that they would both get bored in a life like that. 

He’s not sure Reggie will try again either, though. The last time he did, it pretty much blew up in their faces, because Luke does not know how to express himself outside of his music for the life of him. Luke can’t really blame Reggie for being careful after this. 

Their night in New York feels like a dream now. They haven’t been touching that much since, mostly walking on eggshells around each other instead. But they’re flirting constantly, and they’re both aware of their feelings for each other. They both know what they want. It’s a waiting game to see who snaps first, or if they snap at the same time. It’s gotten so bad, Luke pretty much avoids hanging out with Alex and Julie much lately, because he can’t stand the looks they’re giving him. He  _ knows, _ alright? 

Both of them smile knowingly when he leaves the house that night, though, announcing that he’s going out to surprise Reggie with tickets for the  _ Simple Plan _ show at the Orpheum and that he won’t be back until late. 

“Use a condom!” Alex yells from the kitchen as he walks to the door, and Luke turns around again to flip him the bird. He and Julie are still laughing when he leaves their house. 

+++

Luke didn’t expect Kayla to be there when he shows up at Reggie’s house unannounced. Reggie looks a little taken aback when he opens the door, an apprehensive little frown appearing on his forehead. Luke smiles at him anyway. 

“Luke? I didn’t expect you. What’s up?” Reggie asks, shifting a little on his feet. It’s enough to turn Luke’s smile into a frown of his own. He holds up the tickets, pulling up his shoulders, suddenly feeling weirdly self-conscious about the whole thing. He doesn’t know why, because there is nothing wrong with taking a friend to a concert. Or an almost-boyfriend on a date, anyway. They are long past any of that awkwardness, he thinks, so he doesn’t know why he suddenly feels so nervous. 

“Fancy catching  _ Simple Plan  _ back in town tonight?” he asks, smiling shyly. Reggie’s nervous little frown turns into a brilliant smile, and Luke releases a breath that comes out along with a relieved little laugh. 

“I would love to!” he says excitedly, grinning stupidly at him for a moment. It only lasts a couple of seconds before the frown is back, though. Luke tilts his head and considers him carefully. He knows him well enough to know that something’s not quite right and Reggie is struggling to figure out how to address it. 

“Okay, what’s wrong, Reg? Are you okay?” Luke asks.

Reggie blinks, his eyes widen, and then he jumps forward a little, as if he’s shaking himself out of some sort of trance. 

“Oh! Yes, yes I am. Sorry. It’s just. Kayla’s here. I’m… well,  _ trying to get over some guilt. _ So I thought it would be good for us to talk.” 

Luke feels an uncomfortable twist in his chest, but he swallows it down. He knows this is a good thing. He’s merely surprised, is all. 

“That’s good, Reg,” he says softly, “I’m proud of you.” He pauses, fidgeting with the tickets in his hand. Oh, how he hates fidgeting. He stops himself with a start. “Well, we still got some time before the gig. I can— I can come back later?” 

Reggie bites his lip. 

“Actually— would you maybe like to meet her properly? I know for a fact she would like to meet  _ you _ again, anyway. It could be good?” he says with a small smile, raising his eyebrows in question. 

Luke thinks about it for a moment. He doesn’t feel particularly keen on it, but it seems to be important to Reggie, and he thinks it could probably give him some closure, too. 

“Okay,” Luke says, “Yeah, I’ll meet her.” 

Reggie smiles at him and reaches out to squeeze his hand, leading him inside his lofty apartment. Kayla is sitting on the couch in the living room, idly typing away on her mobile phone. Her eyes widen when she looks up and finds Luke with Reggie across the room, and they widen a fraction more when she spots their joined hands. Luke immediately lets go and takes a step away, offering a tight smile and an awkward wave. 

“Hi again,” he says. Kayla just keeps staring at him. “I’m Luke,” he adds pointlessly, feeling like a complete dumbass. It serves to make her snort, though, and at least that breaks some of the ice in the room. 

“Yeah. You are, aren’t you?” Kayla says, narrowing her eyes at him as she laughs. “I used to be a huge  _ Sunset Curve _ fan right from high school when you were just starting out. Might’ve had a bit of a crush on you at one point. Never in a million years imagined you’d steal my boyfriend one day, though.” 

Luke stares and lets out a startled laugh, eyes darting towards Reggie, who looks a bit red in the face. 

“He didn’t—” Reggie starts, but Kayla shakes her head and laughs again. 

“It’s cool, Reggie. I told you it’s cool. I was just trying to rile Luke up a little. Look at his face! Totally worth it. I deserved that.”

Luke snorts, shaking himself out of his awkwardness. Kayla seems chill enough, and for all he knows, she hasn’t done anything wrong. It’s not her fault that Reggie stayed with her out of guilt and then lied to him in the process. 

“It’s fair,” he says, shrugging, “I kinda did steal your boyfriend. Sorry for that.” Luke smirks at Reggie from the side. The other man is still red in the face, eyes darting between Luke and Kayla. 

Kayla laughs again and waves him off. 

“I was mad at first, but I can’t really blame him. Dumping me for Luke Patterson? I would do the same fucking thing.” She giggles at her own joke and Luke sends Reggie an amused look. “Jokes aside, though— he probably told you that we weren’t happy, and that’s true. I was so caught up in my own misery for so many years, I didn’t even notice it. But he was right. And I’m actually dating this guy now— he’s a basketball player. He plays for the Lakers. I didn’t even remember how nice it is to actually be in love. No offence, Reggiekins.” 

Reggie finally snaps out of his state of frozenness and lets out a relieved little laugh. 

“None taken,” he assures. 

“Snatched an athlete, did you?” Luke says, wiggling his eyebrows. Kayla points at him. 

“Hell yeah, I did.” 

The three of them are grinning at each other for a moment, and Luke is surprised how easy it feels. He counted on awkwardness, especially because he didn’t know much about Kayla at all - if anything he expected her to be a little bitter, maybe, like someone who would guilt trip someone else to stay in a relationship with them. But he realises now that she didn’t. She was depressed, most likely, and Reggie’s guilt was something he took on himself. None of it was her fault, except maybe the partial fault at the accident that she shared with Reggie, but Luke wouldn’t know much about that. It’s none of his business anyway. 

“So, you picking old Reggiekins up for  _ daaaate?” _ Kayla asks after a few moments of silence, wiggling her eyebrows with a knowing smirk on her lips. Reggie blushes again, and Luke knows he’s about to stutter out a  _ no  _ and some kind of awkward explanation, so he decides to spare him the effort and grins.

“Yeah. I am, actually. I’m taking him to a  _ Simple Plan _ show at the Orpheum,” he says, nudging Reggie’s shoulder. His cheeks are adorably red again. 

Kayla coos. 

“Aww, back to the roots? That’s cute. Even if it’s the place where you both nearly died on the same day without even knowing each other.” Kayla shakes her head and chuckles a bit darkly. “Well, have fun. Don’t do anything too dirty in public.” 

Luke winks, and wraps an arm around Reggie’s waist to pull him to his side, pressing a kiss to his cheek.

“Us? Never,” he says, and Reggie shoves him. 

“I can’t believe either of you!” he exclaims as he extracts himself from Luke’s arms. Luke and Kayla both burst into laughter. Luke thinks it was a very good idea to meet her. He didn’t even notice his own bit of guilt he felt towards her until it evaporated. Kayla seemed chill and  _ happy,  _ even. And logically, Luke knows he never had any reason to feel guilty towards her in the first place, but apparently he did anyway. 

“C’mon, Reggiekins,” Kayla says, “Help me up, so I can leave you two love birds to go on your date.” 

Reggie hurries across the room and helps Kayla into her wheelchair, but not without hugging her first and whispering something in her ear. She smiles and pats him on the back, and Luke feels something settle inside his chest that he didn’t realise needed settling before. It’s good. 

+++

“They’re playing the Orpheum this time? Man, they’re really blowing up! You totally called it!” Reggie says excitedly when they’re in a taxi on the way to the venue on Sunset Boulevard. 

“Of course I did,” Luke says matter-of-factly. “I know good music when I hear it.” 

Reggie snorts. 

“You’re such a snob!” 

Luke pokes him in the side and makes a face at him, the corner of his lips twitching upwards. There is an extended moment of silence where Luke watches the buildings outside the window fly by. 

“Kayla is cool,” he says eventually, biting his lip. Reggie nods.

“Yeah. She is. I think we’ll always be friends. We just didn’t work as a couple, and I think we both already knew that before the accident, but then everything changed so drastically and my music career started taking off while she had a hard time coping with not being able to walk and… yeah. I mean, you know how it ended. Man, I was such a dick. To both of you.” 

Luke reaches across the backseat to flick Reggie’s nose. He shakes his head. 

“Dude! Please don’t tell me I have to suffer through apologies every other week for the next five years. Because I’m gonna kick you out of his car right now if I have to.” 

Reggie raises his hands in surrender and chuckles. 

“I  _ won’t!  _ I barely even feel guilty anymore. Is it okay if I apologize like once a year, though?” 

Luke rolls his eyes fondly. 

“Okay. I think I can manage that. One too many and you’re out, though! I don’t care if we’re in a car or an airplane when it happens!” 

Reggie grins, hands still raised in surrender. 

“Alright, alright. You’re really something, Patterson.” 

Luke snorts.

“Duh. I’m wearing your merch,” he says, pointing at the infamous thrifted Reggie Peters t-shirt he’s wearing. Reggie laughs.

“Yeah, would you look at that! And you totally didn’t force me to wear me to wear my  _ Sunset Curve _ shirt.” 

Luke totally did force Reggie to wear it because he is cheesy like that. He figures there is no pointing in pretending otherwise anymore. 

“Please. I know you love that shirt.”

Reggie shrugs, his grin almost too wide to fit on his face.

“I never said I didn’t.” 

Once they arrive at the Orpheum, Luke immediately takes Reggie into the side alley where the back entrance is located. The queue is already several hundred feet long, and he isn’t particularly keen on giving half a thousand autographs. There is a security guard positioned at the back entrance, and Luke recognises him right away. He snorts, just the moment the guy says, “Well, if it isn’t our two  _ celebrities _ again.”

Reggie makes a face. 

“You say that as if we lied. We can’t help being famous, alright?” 

The guy snorts and shakes his head. 

“Guess you can’t, kid. Tell you what you  _ can  _ do, though.” He pulls a CD copy of Reggie’s second album out of his jacket pocket. “Sign this for my wife, will you? She insisted I take this in case you show up again.” 

Reggie laughs and takes it, pulling the sharpie he always carries around out of the pocket of his signature leather jacket. 

“Sure. What’s her name?” he asks. 

“Amanda,” the guy tells him, and Reggie signs the CD to Amanda and draws a little heart next to her name, before handing it back. In the meantime, the security guard pulled out another CD. It's a copy of the country single Luke featured on. He gestures for them both to sign it as well. When they’re done, the man nods and thanks them, shoving the CDs back into his jacket. Luke waves their tickets around. 

“Look, man. We even got tickets this time,” he says sassily. 

“I guess I don’t have to ask why you aren’t using the regular entrance, then.” The security guard gestures behind Luke and Reggie, where a small mob of people gathered about 20 feet away, all whispering and gawking at them, some shrieking and waving. 

The boys shrug, waving back at their fans but quickly hurrying inside the venue the moment the guard steps aside to let them in. 

“Thanks, man!” Reggie says as he passes the him. “Tell your wife we said  _ Hi.” _

Luke almost feels dizzy with deja vu. It gets even worse when they stumble right into Benji on their way in. The guy looks surprised but immediately bursts into a bright smile when he sees them. 

“Well, if it isn’t our favorite  _ Simple Plan _ fans!” he says, hugging them both and clapping them on the back. “The band’s gonna love this. They’re so hyped for tonight’s show.”

Luke smiles. 

“I can imagine. Just tell them not to get any street dogs before they go on stage.” 

Luke doesn’t think Benji gets the joke, because it’s very niche trivia from their early band days that only diehard  _ Sunset Curve _ fans would know, but he laughs anyway. 

“Why don’t you tell them yourself?” he asks and leads them down a hallway towards the backstage greenroom. They’re greeted by loud hollering and several cheers, immediately finding themselves surrounded by all five band members. 

“Yo, it’s so awesome to see you,” Pierre tells them. “It’s been a minute, hasn’t it? I mean, look at this. It’s the Orpheum!” 

Luke and Reggie both laugh happily, and Luke high fives Sebastien, the band’s rhythm guitarist. 

“Yeah, just don’t eat any street dogs from dodgy vendors before you go on stage,” Luke repeats, chuckling. Reggie pokes him in the side and promptly jumps into an explanation why they should avoid street dogs around the Orpheum. 

“You two are like star crossed or something,” Pierre says with a snort when Reggie finishes the story. “Congrats, by the way. Saw the pictures on MTV. You weren’t together when we met last time, were you?” 

Luke blushes, and he knows Reggie is too. This would be so much easier if they already got their shit together. Or if they weren’t so careless on their Disney trip. 

“No, we weren’t,” Luke says, clearing his throat. He doesn’t say anything else. He doesn’t want to lie either way, and everything he could say about their current relationship status would somehow feel like a lie. 

Pierre claps him on the shoulder. 

“Well, we’re all happy for you. The chemistry was unavoidable, huh?” 

Luke chuckles and scratches at the back of his head. 

“Yeah.” 

He feels Reggie’s cool fingertips around his wrist, squeezing softly, and somehow it helps ground him in a way he didn’t realize he needed grounding.

“Hardly,” Reggie agrees. 

“So, you’re gonna rock out with us again?” Sebastien asks, and all five band members look at them expectantly. “The crowd went absolutely insane last time.” 

Luke didn’t really plan on it, but playing the Orpheum stage again sure sounds tempting. He’s played it multiple times since their first failed attempt, but it’s been awhile now that  _ Sunset Curve _ easily sells out bigger venues. Playing it with Reggie sounds even more tempting. There is an itch under his skin that really wants to play  _ Force of Nature _ with him, and Luke wonders if he’s a bit of a masochist after all. 

“We wouldn’t want to steal your spotlight,” Luke says modestly, and Reggie raises a surprised eyebrow at him. He shrugs. He really doesn’t think he would have wanted to share the stage the first time he played the Orpheum. 

“Nah! If anything, you’re only enhancing it. We would love to play with you,” Sebastien says. And well, Luke really doesn’t have to be asked a third time. He grins instead and high fives him. 

“Alright then! Awesome! Let’s do it.” 

Pierre grins a bit sheepishly, eyes darting between Luke and Reggie. Luke thinks he has an idea what the singer is about to suggest, and his itch is almost bursting out of his skin. 

“You wanna play  _ Force of Nature? _ That song is a banger, man.” 

Luke wants to play coy, he really does, but all that comes out of his mouth is a “Hell, yeah!” and what is he supposed to do about that? They only played  _ Force of Nature _ live a couple of times since it came out, but he knows it’s fun, and Reggie being on stage with him to perform it already makes him feel some type of way. 

Reggie, however, pouts. 

“Hey! If you get to play that song, I want to play  _ September Night, _ too.” 

The band immediately bursts into excited cheers, and Luke feels a nervous twist in his chest. 

“That is an excellent idea,” Pierre says. “Two bangers of yours back to back? The crowd is gonna  _ love _ it!” 

Luke meets Reggie’s eyes, and finds a tentative smile on his face. His fingers are still wrapped around his wrist, so he squeezes again, and Luke’s initial nervousness evaporates into thin air. 

+

They watch the show from the side of the stage this time. The crowd is too large for them to go out there, and some fans have already spotted them and started waving excitedly. Plus, the Orpheum is a little too big for them to just jump on stage whenever they’re ready to play with the band. 

_ Simple Plan _ start out with  _ One Day  _ again and for the second time that night, Luke feels that sense of deja vu. He looks over to Reggie and finds the same kind of confused wonder on his face. They’re both leaning against the wall, watching, their arms brushing as they bop along to the tune. They begin to rock out a little more as the show goes on, jumping and screaming at each other’s faces, and they’re a little sweaty from that alone when Pierre calls them on stage about halfway through the set.

“Who’s ready for some special gueeeests?” the singer asks the crowd. “Welcome back, by popular demand, Luke from  _ Sunset Curve _ and Reggie Peteeeers!” 

The cheers are almost deafening again when Luke and Reggie jump on stage, grinning and waving. Luke grabs a mic, on that was specially put out for him this time, and immediately goes into his performer mode. It comes as naturally to him as breathing. 

“Hello, Orpheum! Party PEOPLE! How are we feeling tonight?” 

The crowd cheers again, and Reggie comes up next to him at the front of the stage. 

“Can we talk about how  _ insane  _ these guys are?” he shouts into his own mic. “Give it up for  _ Simple Plan! _ ”

More deafening cheers. 

Luke grins at Reggie. He doesn’t know what makes him say it, but he does it anyway. 

“So who wants us to play a song with them that I wrote about  _ this guy _ ,” he asks the crowd, pointing at Reggie. Reggie blushes, Luke sees it even in the bright stage lights, but he wouldn’t be a born entertainer if he couldn’t channel his embarrassment on stage into something else.

“You wrote a song about me?” he asks with a fake gasp. “Awww, Luke!” 

The crowd coos right along with him, and Luke grins, flips him the bird and grabs the guitar Jeff is handing him. Reggie grabs the bass from David, and Luke shares a nod with Pierre and the drummer, Chuck, getting ready to play the song that lives most comfortably in his heart. He thinks he’s ready for the whole world to know. The music flows right through him, making him feel alive in a way nothing else can, and he has his eyes fixed on Reggie when he starts singing the first verse. 

_ Can’t get him out of my mind  _

_ Everything I have left behind  _

_ He’s like a force of nature  _

_ Sweepin’ in and knocking me off my damn feet , _

_ and now I can’t,  _

_ I just can’t get him out of my head _

He smiles at him all the way through, and Reggie smiles right back. He’s serenading him right there on stage, for everyone to see, and he really doesn’t care. For a moment, Reggie is his entire universe. 

Pierre takes over the pre-chorus, rocking out back and forth with Luke, and then they both dive into the chorus together and Luke feels like he’s about to burst at the seams with the intensity of what he’s feeling, the buzz under his skin, the tingles in his gut spreading all over his body. 

He starts singing the second verse when it’s time, but he only gets two words out before Reggie takes over, and all Luke can do is stop and stare at him as he sings the words that were written for him after a night so similar to this one. 

_ He takes my hand, let’s run away  _

_ He and I, beyond the light of day  _

_ We’re on a road to the stars  _

_ Carried by the wind, basking in the sun, _

_ and now I can’t,  _

_ I can’t get him out of my head _

Reggie seems to realise that he’s in no state to jump back in, and Pierre is busy rocking out with Chuck on the drums, so he keeps going, singing 

_ I think it might be something,  _

_ he doesn’t believe in _

_ So he left me stranded,  _

_ Evaporated in the morning  _

_ Like he was merely a ghost  _

_ On a blessed summer night _

Luke regains his bearings just in time to join him for the chorus, and Reggie comes over to share his mic with him as they yell Luke’s lyrics at each other at their most perfect vocal capacity. 

_ I’m coming down with something  _

_ Might be a change of weather  _

_ He brought the sun and now there is only rain  _

_ A force of nature  _

_ Unrelenting and unstoppable  _

_ And all I can do is sit and watch  _

_ The devastating beauty of a hurricane _

Luke thinks this is it. The best moment of his life. He’s sharing a song that lives in his heart with the person it is meant for, someone who changed his life on a Friday night in September, just over a year ago now. Performing music has always been what he loves most, but he thinks that what he’s feeling for Reggie in that moment comes really close to it. His feelings for both are intensified by each other, and Luke’s chest is filled with something he can barely contain. Reggie is even more beautiful now than he was then. He’s beaming at him, green eyes sparkling in the spotlight, and Luke finds himself falling. He thought he already reached the depth of how far he can fall for Reggie Peters, but now he thinks he was mistaken. 

When the last chord of the song rings out, Reggie puts his bass aside in a heartbeat, just as Luke does the same with his guitar, and then he wraps his arms around him in a hug so tight, not even a sheet of paper could fit between them. Luke holds on, burying his face in Reggie’s sweaty neck, and he never wants to let go. The shouts and cheers around them are deafening, and he faintly hears Pierre tell the crowd to give them a moment. Luke is reluctant to pull away, but he knows he is about to hear Reggie sing  _ September Night _ for him and it’s enough to break away. 

“Whoo! Well that was  _ intense,”  _ Reggie says into his mic, back in his entertainer voice. “To make it fair, though. Who wants to hear a song  _ I _ wrote about  _ him _ now?” __

The crowd sounds more than ready for it, and Luke laughs into his own mic. 

“You’re such a romantic, Peters, aren’t you?” 

Pierre coos, and the crowd joins him. Luke thinks he blushes a little, and it’s the first time that ever happened to him on stage. 

When the first familiar chords of  _ September Night _ start playing and Reggie’s voice sets in, Luke thinks he’s going to die in the best way possible. He focuses on his guitar playing, his eyes fixed on Reggie again, who sings back and forth with Pierre, until he nods at him, encouraging Luke to take over the chorus with him. So Luke dives into the lyrics he knows by heart, sharing them with Reggie and feeling like he could fly if he jumped off stage now. 

_ So I burned with him for a night  _

_ Brighter than I’ve ever felt before  _

_ I’m not sure I can win this fight  _

_ He’s got a hold on me _

_ A melody in my heart, _

_ For all that he is fire _

_ He is also the fresh rain  _

_ after a hot summer day. _

He’s reminded of the first time he listened to the song and the intensity of his impossible feelings for barely more than a stranger at that point. So much has changed since then. His feelings grew more intense, and the stranger grew into one of his best friends. 

Reggie changes the lyrics in the second verse, and Luke nearly does jump off stage when he realises.

_ Woke up with second degree burns _

_ It’s what you get for playing with fire  _

_ But he’s got a hold on me _

_ I don’t want to let him go  _

_ Learned that the choice is mine  _

_ It’s always been mine _

_ Please burn me again  _

_ Just to make me feel bright once more _

He smiles at him, reaching out to shove at his shoulder, and they finish the song together with Pierre. They are met with the loudest cheers of the night, and Luke picks Reggie up and spins him around, and then promptly does the same with all five band members. It might just be the best night of his life, so what can he do? 

+++

The October night air is almost startling when they’re leaving the Orpheum through the back entrance later that night. Luke feels a little sweaty and exhausted, but the energy of the gig is still running through his veins, and not for the first time does he feel like he could fly if he tried. He takes Reggie’s hand and smiles at him as he drags him along the alley towards the main street, where their taxi is waiting. He knows they would have to dodge a few remaining fans that way, but he doesn’t want to wait around backstage any longer. They already had a couple of beers with the band, and he doesn’t particularly feel like getting drunk tonight. 

“Take me to your roof?” Luke asks quietly, and Reggie nods, his smile so brilliant, it sends Luke’s butterflies on a nice little merry-go-round. 

As expected, there are a few fans remaining on the street, and Luke spots the couple they met at Disneyland a few months ago. The girl waves excitedly, grinning from ear to ear. It’s quite infectious, so Luke grins back. 

“I knew it!” she calls, and Luke points at her. 

“You totally did! You win, my friend!” 

She giggles, and nudges her boyfriend in the side. 

“Legendary couple, you two. Absolutely legendary,” the guy comments. Luke glances at Reggie at his side and thinks that he agrees, even though they aren’t technically a couple yet. The world thinks so, so what’s the difference, really? 

They end up signing a few CDs and tickets, take a few pictures, and give out hugs - but Luke’s heart isn’t quite in it tonight. He really, really wants to be alone with Reggie again. 

“Sorry, guys,” he says eventually. “We gotta head out.” 

“Yeah,” Reggie agrees. “We love you so much, though. Thanks for supporting us.” 

The small group all cheer a little, and Luke finally drags Reggie towards their taxi. 

“We really do!” he exclaims as he walks, “See you all on tour soon!” 

And then they finally head off towards Reggie’s place. They’re both quiet for the entire ride, but it’s comfortable, and when they’re standing in the elevator together, Luke eyes them in the mirror just like he did that first night they met. He thinks they both look a little older, but not by much. They still look absolutely  _ cool _ together, and now he can’t unsee the look in their eyes either. It’s almost disgusting, how gone they both are for each other.  _ Legendary couple,  _ alright. 

Luke takes Reggie’s hand and grins at him. He thinks he’s ready to take a plunge, just like he did that first night. The sparkle in Reggie’s eyes suggests that he feels the same, and Luke feels an excited pull in his stomach that makes him almost giddy when they reach the roof and Reggie turns on the lights. For a moment, Luke feels like he’s travelled in time, but then he looks at Reggie and his feelings tell him that this is real, and this the present, and he finally gets to make it right. 

They’re settling on the floor close to the edge of the roof, and Luke thinks it’s the same spot where they kissed for the second time. He lies down on his back, counting the few visible stars in the night sky. Reggie does the same, and Luke intertwines their hands, just like the first time. 

“Do you still believe in fate, Reg?” Luke asks quietly. 

Reggie hums and turns to his side to face him. Luke mirrors his movement, and Reggie looks almost like he did that night, with the fairy lights reflecting in his eyes. It nearly takes Luke’s breath away. 

“More than ever before,” Reggie tells him. Then he chuckles, and Luke eyes him curiously. “You think I have to write a song called  _ October Night  _ now?” 

Luke snorts, but he actually thinks it might be a cool idea. He’s not sure what he would call his song about tonight, though. Reggie is still a  _ Force of Nature. _ But he’s also the calm after a storm.  _ Calm After The Storm.  _ He hums. 

“You know what? You absolutely should, dude,” Luke says, smiling fondly. 

“Are you also gonna write a song about tonight?” 

Luke reaches out and traces Reggie’s cheekbones with his fingertips. His eyes wander over his face, saving his expression to his memory. 

“I write songs about everything, bro. You know that,” he says with a chuckle. 

Reggie closes his eyes and hums softly as Luke’s fingertips keep trailing over his face, mapping it all out. 

“Did you count on the weather tonight?” Reggie asks tentatively after a moment or two. Luke smiles, because he knows he already has an answer to that. 

“I feared there might be some rain. But it’s calm. Like after a storm.” 

Reggie opens his eyes to look at him, and there is so much wonder in it, Luke almost forgets he needs to breathe. And then Reggie closes the distance between them and kisses him, and Luke will never tire of the feeling. It’s old and new, and calm and exciting. It’s the most natural thing in the world and yet completely extraordinary. So Luke kisses back with every single feeling in his body, every breath and every ache, every tingle and every itch. His hand travels from Reggie’s cheek to the back of his head to keep him close, while the other makes its way beneath his shirt to map out the soft skin of his stomach and chest. Reggie moans quietly, and Luke shivers when his cool fingertips touch the skin on his back, just above the waistband of his jeans. He deepens their kiss, his tongue sliding past Reggie’s lips and into his mouth, eliciting another soft moan. 

They kiss and touch like this until Luke doesn’t remember where he ends and Reggie starts. Their movements become slower after a while, their kisses languid and their touches lingering. Neither of them says anything when Reggie gets up from the ground, pulls Luke up with him and takes him down to his apartment, leads him to his bedroom and pushes him down onto his bed. They lost their jackets on their way there, and the shirts they got in the thrift shop that night they met follow right after. Luke gasps when their bare skin touches, and he turns them around so he can kiss Reggie’s neck. He maps out Reggie’s body with his hands and his lips, saving every single nook and detail he comes across to his memory. It’s all soft touches, bare skin on bare skin, longing kisses, gentle moans, and heavy breaths from then on. 

“Holy shit, Luke,” Reggie says late into the night, panting heavily as he lies sprawled across Luke’s body. Luke chuckles. He wraps his arms around Reggie’s bare torso and nuzzles at his neck. 

“That was—” 

“Pretty hot?” Luke suggests, smirking against Reggie’s skin.

“I was gonna say  _ intense, _ but yeah. That, too.” 

He giggles and bites at Luke’s shoulder. Luke knows they should probably talk. There is so much he wants to say. But it’s also 3 am, and he’s so, so sleepy and so, so exhausted. He sighs, snuggling his face further into Reggie’s neck. 

“You sleepy, babe?” Reggie asks around a chuckle. 

Luke hums in agreement. 

“Well, you certainly exerted yourself. I guess you deserve to sleep now.” Reggie presses a kiss to Luke’s hair. 

“Don’t run again,” Luke murmurs, already half asleep. He faintly feels Reggie’s chuckle.

“This is  _ my _ apartment, man. Where would I run to?” 

It’s the last thing he hears before he falls asleep. 

+++

Reggie is already looking at him when Luke blinks his eyes open the next morning. He smiles softly, and receives a smile in return. His butterflies wake up, too, and Luke is about to lean in for a kiss when Reggie says, “Breakfast? I’m starving, man.” 

Luke takes a second for his brain to catch on, and then he nods. Breakfast does sound heavenly, he thinks, and his growling stomach promptly agrees. Reggie is out of the bed and on his way to the kitchen before Luke can do or say anything else, so he just falls back for a moment and sighs. A tiny voice in his head reminds him that this feels all too familiar, but he ignores it. They have come too far now. Reggie is just a hungry person who needs his food in the morning. That’s all. 

Reggie puts on a  _ Friends _ rerun as they eat Lucky Charms out of colorful bowls,  _ Hotdog _ lounging on the couch between them, and they chat and joke about it as they watch, laughing and bickering in between. Luke feels something ease in his chest, and it stays that way even as he leaves and only dares to press a kiss to Reggie’s cheek. They’re fine. They’re in love, and they slept together, and now they are boyfriends. Right? It doesn’t need saying. 

Alex claps him on the shoulder when Luke returns home, grinning proudly, and Luke grins back, feeling a little floaty as he goes up to his room to change his clothes, the previous night still thrumming under his skin like a guitar riff that is played perfectly, every chord on point. He sits down on his bed and pulls out his journal, writing  _ Calm After The Storm _ on a new page. The lyrics are flowing right out of him. 

+++

They don’t talk about it. Why don’t they fucking talk about it? They just go back to how things were before their date, and Luke feels increasingly itchy about it. Reggie’s lips are like a phantom on his, he still  _ feels _ his bare skin all around him, and he can barely keep his hands to himself anymore whenever he sees him. He’s not even sure what’s holding him back anymore, but he doesn’t find the right words or the courage to kiss Reggie again either, and it seems like Reggie feels the same. It’s  _ infuriating,  _ really.

They’re working on the last song for their EP together in Luke’s home studio on an ordinary Wednesday the following week when things finally boil over between them. Luke has felt Reggie’s eyes on him all day, even more so than usual, and his gaze almost feels burning when Luke plays him the riff he’s come up with for their new song. 

“What do you think about this chord progression? Look,” he says, his fingers skilfully moving over the guitar strings. “And then we’re back with the chorus, like ‘Finally found something…’” 

“I love you,” Reggie blurts. Luke freezes. His butterflies break loose in a rather violent way, and he feels himself flooded with all the feelings he’s buried for so long and didn’t dare to release fully yet. He feels them all at once, some of them familiar, but so much stronger than before. They run deeper now, he realises again. Because where he was infatuated with a guy he barely knew before, he is now in love with one he feels like he knows inside and out. They are the same guy, though, and his feelings slot right into place, nearly knocking him over with their force. When he looks up, Reggie is pale and red-cheeked all at once. 

“Oh my god, I’m so sorry,” he scrambles to say, looking panicked. Luke can’t really blame him after what happened the last time he acted on his feelings instead of letting Luke take the lead. “I didn’t mean to… It just came out, I don’t know why I said that… Luke, I  _ know— _ ” 

He’s adorable, and Luke loves Reggie so much, really. So he beams at him. It’s all he can do.

“I love you too, you dork,” he admits quietly.

Reggie stops his panicked rambling, eyes wide as they meet Luke’s. 

“You  _ do?” _ he asks, voice high pitched. Luke nods. He puts his guitar to the side and gets up from his seat to take the two steps separating him from Reggie. 

“Tell me, how could I not?” he asks quietly. And then he leans in and brushes his lips against Reggie’s again,  _ finally,  _ and he’s nearly knocked off his feet all over again. He never wants to stop, wants to drown in Reggie until he can’t tell them apart, just like that night they spent together last week, but then there’s a sob that he  _ feels _ against his lips before he hears it. Luke regrettably pulls away to find Reggie crying rather shakily. He reaches out to wipe the tears from his cheeks, cupping his face in his hands. 

“Babe, hey. What’s wrong?” he asks softly. He’s never been very good at dealing with people crying in front of him, but for Reggie he will try over and over again. 

“I just--” Reggie starts, but doesn’t seem to be able to get the words out between his sobs. Luke wraps his arms around him, one around his shoulder, the other holding him close with a hand in his hair as Reggie buries his face in Luke’s neck. 

“I’m so sorry,” he mumbles, his lips brushing against Luke’s skin. Luke holds him for a long time before Reggie pulls away again with a sigh and a deep breath. He wipes at his eyes, but Luke takes his hands away from his face and replaces them with his own. 

“Hey. I told you, no more apologies. But maybe we should talk a few things through first, huh?” he says softly. He presses another short, chaste kiss to Reggie’s lips and smiles, eyebrow raised in question. Reggie nods. So Luke takes his hand and leads him out of the studio and upstairs, out into the garden and right to the edge, where they have the perfect view over the ocean. He sits down onto a small ledge and Reggie slowly lowers himself next to him. Luke takes his hand and starts absently playing with his fingers in an attempt to calm them both down. Reggie doesn’t say anything for a long while, so Luke takes it upon himself to make the second step. He’s glad Reggie was brave enough to make the first.

“When we went to Disney, you asked me if I believed in love at first sight after I met you,” he says slowly. “I wasn’t sure, to be honest. I thought, maybe. Like dude, I never felt this way about anyone before. And now… well, now I know that you can’t really love a person until you truly know them. I thought I could but… then it all came crashing down on me, didn’t it?” he says with a self-deprecating laugh. He lets it melt into a fond smile as he meets Reggie’s eyes. He’s so beautiful, his green eyes still a little red rimmed and shining in the late afternoon sun, his freckles standing out more now after a long summer. 

“I forgave you a long time ago, Reg. I told you before. I get it. Why you felt like you had to stay with her. And I also get why you didn’t tell me that night. I don’t like it, bro, but I get it. It was a mistake, but you fixed it. And then you ran again, and so what? It was my fault too, and I came to get you back, didn’t I? You’re like, my best friend right there with Alex and Julie now, man. The only difference is that I also want to kiss your pretty face off.” 

Reggie is wearing his signature blush again, but there is a smile tugging at the corner of his lips. Luke remembers his moments of cockiness that he unlocked on the Empire State Building that night, and he wants to urge him on to embrace that now as well. 

“You also wanted to kiss Alex’s face off once upon a time. And Julie’s too, if I remember correctly,” he says teasingly. Luke laughs. 

“Point taken. I know I never felt like this about either of them, though. You’re like my freaking soulmate or some shit, dude.”

Reggie tilts his head, his tentative smile turning into a full on grin now. 

“You also said that about them, if I remember correctly.” 

Snorting, Luke shoves him. He knows Reggie is being difficult on purpose, and he can’t even blame him. 

“No, I said they’re like my  _ platonic _ soulmates, or some shit. I never loved either of them the way I love you, man. Not more or less but... It feels different. You’re special.” 

Reggie bites his lip, and his smile is so bright, Luke feels his heart warm his swarm of butterflies like the sun on a spring day.  _ Yeah,  _ he thinks cheesy shit like that now because he’s  _ insanely _ in love with Reggie Peters, and he doesn’t think he can ever go back. 

“Aw, man. Is it okay if I kiss you before diving into my bit of this conversation?” Reggie asks, and Luke replies by gripping the front of his shirt to draw him into a kiss a little more forcefully than necessary. Their lips meet in the middle, and Luke doesn’t hesitate to introduce his tongue this time, gently licking Reggie’s lower lip before making its way inside Reggie’s mouth. He kisses him deeply, and Reggie kisses back, and it’s the best feeling in the world. It’s so good, he whimpers a little when Reggie pulls back. 

“That was pretty hot,” Reggie comments, and Luke punches his shoulder even as he pants. Yeah, it was pretty hot, alright. Luke chases after him, tries to kiss him again, but Reggie stops him with a hand on his shoulder. 

“Later, babe,” he says quietly, smiling like it is quite hard for him to hold back, too. “Look. I need to get this out first. Luke, you-- you changed my life. You changed it that night we met, and you keep changing it every day. I was so unhappy before I met you. I felt trapped. And you showed me a whole new world that scared me so much at first that I ran instead of facing my uncomfortable truths. But then I met you again, and you gave me the courage I needed to finally deal with my past and to break up with Kayla. She told you she’s happily dating this basketball player now, right? And when she came by the other day she actually  _ thanked _ me - I was gonna tell you about that. Anyway. You’re the best person I have ever met, Luke Patterson, and I genuinely thought that I fucked up too badly for you to ever love me back. So I ran again. You brought me back. And I would’ve been fine with us just being friends eventually, but then— then last week we—” Reggie shakes his head and blushes deliciously. “That was the best night of my life, but I wasn’t sure— even after—” He sighs. “Doesn’t matter now. I just-- earlier, when you played me that riff… I don’t think you realise how beautiful you are, dude. I couldn’t stop it. I love you so,  _ so _ fucking much.” 

Luke stares at Reggie for a long moment, watches his tears fall again as his words slowly catch up to him. He realises with a start that Reggie isn’t crying because he’s upset. He’s crying because he is so  _ happy.  _ Because he loves Luke, and Luke loves him back. And just like that, Luke feels his own tears spill over. He wants to crawl into Reggie’s arms and never let him go again, he wants to kiss him until they’re one. Every cheesy fucking love song suddenly makes sense to him. 

“Reg. Babe, look what you’ve done to me,” Luke jokes through his tears. They’re both laughing and crying at the same time. “I am so  _ insanely, _ irrevocably in love with you, you fucking dork.”

And then Reggie pulls him into a kiss again, and it tastes like tears and energy drinks. Luke feels addicted to it the moment he gets another taste, deepening the kiss and pulling Reggie closer until they’re as close as physically possible. It’s not frantic, but it’s not gentle either. It’s pushing and pulling, it’s taking and giving, exploring each other in a way they haven’t gotten the chance to before. Luke doesn’t know how long they’re sitting there in the garden, kissing like their lives depend on it, but he never wants to stop anyway. He slips his hand beneath the seams of Reggie’s shirt after pulling it out of his waistband, letting his fingers ghost over the soft skin on Reggie’s side. Leaving Reggie’s mouth, albeit a little regrettably, he kisses his way down his neck and nibs at the skin there. Reggie moans softly and clings to him, his hands buried in his hair at the back of his head. Luke spends quite a while on Reggie’s neck, before returning to his mouth, kissing him much softer this time, longingly, pouring all the love he has for this man into the touch of their lips. 

A hoot from somewhere behind them makes them jump apart, and Luke immediately misses the feeling of Reggie’s lips on his. The hoot is joined by some clapping, and Luke is not the least bit surprised to find Alex and Julie cheering them on from the house. Willie appears behind Alex, and after he is informed about what he just missed, he hollers like his favorite team just won a hockey game or something. Luke rolls his eyes. Reggie just grins happily. 

“Luke loves me, y’all,” he announces. Luke shoves him, but can’t help laughing. 

“Oh, we know,” Julie says. Alex snorts.

“You should have heard him when he came home that morning last year. ‘I think I’m in love, Alex.’” Luke glares at him as Alex attempts his best Luke impression, but fails dramatically in Luke’s opinion. 

“I don’t sound like that,” he grumbles. 

Reggie laughs. 

“You kinda do though, babe,” he tells him. Luke turns to glare at him instead, but he fails even more dramatically than Alex failed his impression, because he can’t stop the corner of his lips twitching upwards. 

“Is it too early to break up?” he jokes. Reggie stares at him, still smiling, but quickly turns back to Alex. 

“He’s right, he doesn’t sound like that at all!” he says pointedly, and Luke shoves him again, laughing. 

“You’re lucky I love you.” 

Reggie pokes his tongue out at him, and Luke takes his hand, intertwining their fingers. 

“I can’t tell if this is better or worse than the pining,” Alex comments. Luke exchanges a look with Reggie, and then they both jump up to chase Alex inside, tackling him to the couch and engaging him in a tickling match. He knows Julie and Willie are standing in the corner somewhere laughing and cheering Alex on, the traitors, but Luke has too much fun rolling around the couch with his two favourite people. He doesn’t mind that the third is making fun of him with the one who could easily become the fourth if Flynn doesn’t watch out. He wraps his arms around Alex’s waist from behind to hold him down while Reggie attacks their friend’s belly. Luke knows that’s where Alex is the most ticklish, and he’s perfected his silent communication with Reggie enough over the last couple of months to be able to tell him so without opening his mouth. 

Alex shrieks, Reggie laughs evilly, and Luke feels warm all over. 

He wonders if this is what happiness feels like. It’s a rush he’s only ever felt on stage before, and finding it off stage suddenly feels like the best thing in the world.

He’s in love. He wants to write a hundred love songs. He has three soulmates or some shit. He’s happy. And one look at Reggie tells him that he is happy, too. 

\- End. That’s a lie. There is an epilogue. -


	10. Epilogue

**Epilogue**

**July 29th, 2004**

**_The World’s Favorite Celebrity Couple Set to Go on Tour Together_ **

_ Ever since Sunset Curve frontman Luke Patterson and country sweetheart Reggie Peters made their relationship public at a Disney park last year, fans and friends alike have been fawning over the couple. While there was some initial backlash from a few more conservative fans of the country singer when they came out as a non-heterosexual couple, the overwhelming majority has been in huge support of the two love birds.  _

_ Shortly after their public outing as a couple, Patterson appeared on a country song with Peters that did surprisingly well on the Hot 100, making it Peters’s second top 10 country single. He achieved his first number one last year with the pop punk number “September Night” that is rumored to be about Patterson. Respectively, Sunset Curve’s first number one hit “Force of Nature” skyrocketed the charts two years ago and is rumored to be about Peters. The two musicians were first sighted at a Simple Plan concert in September of the same year after sneaking away from the VMA’s together. Both songs mention a mystery man and a particular September night.  _

_ Two weeks ago, the couple released their first EP as a duo together. The record is called “Sick Melodies” and features 6 new songs Peters and Patterson wrote and recorded together as Luke & Reggie. Punk rock guitars meet country melodies on their debut release, completed by Patterson’s rougher rock vocals and Peters’s more melodic high notes. Fans also get to hear Patterson’s softer side again on a track titled “Parents”. The singer already proved his vocal range on Sunset Curve’s early hit ballad “Unsaid Emily”.  _

_ On a surprising note, Sunset Curve announced last week that Peters is going to join them on the bass guitar in the future, making a quartet out of the previous trio including Alex Mercer on the drums and Bobby Wilson on the rhythm guitar. The band emphasised that Peters addition to the band has nothing to do with his involvement with frontman Patterson. “The chemistry just fits between us,” Mercer said in a press statement. Patterson himself played the bass guitar parts on previous records in addition to his own guitar parts, and a touring musician joined the band on previous tours.  _

_ In the same statement, the band announced a world tour featuring Luke & Reggie as support act. Peter’s solo headline shows are being planned in sync with the band’s, playing the same venues on the previous or following days respectively. “I don’t think you can mash up our fanbases quite so drastically just yet,” Peters said in the statement. It is safe to say that those nights are going to be quite busy for the country star.  _

_ Sunset Curve’s new single “Calm After The Storm” is set to be released tomorrow, on July 30th. Peters is also releasing a new single this Friday, titled “October Night” (featuring Simple Plan). _

_ Fans have speculated about any connection to the artists’ previously released songs “Force of Nature” and “September Night”. Peters and Patterson chose not to comment on the theories.  _

Luke puts the newspaper down and turns in Reggie’s embrace. He grins, snorting. 

“They totally think you only joined  _ Sunset Curve _ because you’re sleeping with me, bro,” he says. Reggie shrugs and threads his hands through Luke’s growing hair before pressing a kiss to his lips. 

“Dude, that’s like one of the more harmless assumptions tabloids have made about me. Trust me. Plus, I  _ am _ sleeping with you. Cause and effect might not be related, but it’s still true.” 

Luke snorts and flicks Reggie’s nose, causing him to scrunch it up in that adorable way Luke loves. 

“You can admit now that you only seduced me so you could join  _ Sunset Curve, _ aka the most awesome band on the planet,” he teases. 

Reggie steps back and raises his hands in surrender, grinning.

“Oh no, busted. You totally got me.”

Luke clutches a hand to his heart. 

“And here I was thinking you actually love me,” he says dramatically. 

Shrugging, Reggie tells him, “Sorry, babe.” 

Luke shoves him playfully, and pushes him back against the kitchen counter. 

“I’ll make you love me, then,” he growls, and captures Reggie’s lips in a passionate kiss. They shared thousands of kisses since they officially got their shit together, but kissing Reggie Peters still makes Luke Patterson weak in the knees. 

“Damn,” Reggie murmurs against his lips, “I think I fell right into your trap.” 

“Good,” Luke replies and deepens their kiss, smiling into it and pushing a hand beneath Reggie’s shirt just when Alex’s voice reaches his ears and he regrettably pulls away, sighing. 

“Gross,” Alex comments casually, Willie trailing behind him. 

“Did you know Reggie only joined the band because he’s sleeping with me?” Luke asks, absently playing with a few loose strands of Reggie’s hair. 

“Oh, I know,” Alex says jokingly, “Duh. That’s also the reason I joined. Because I was sleeping with you.” 

Reggie makes a choking noise and bursts into laughter. 

“Please tell me you never slept with Bobby or we can change the band name to Luke Patterson’s Sex Club.” 

Luke feels his cheeks heat up, and he really doesn’t know why. He hates his friends a little bit. 

“I’ll have you know, I did not. I would have, but he told me he doesn’t go further than kissing with men,” Luke informs them casually. Alex nearly chokes on his water, and Reggie’s eyes shoot up on his forehead. 

“So you kissed him?” he asks. 

Luke shrugs. “Oh, yeah. Once. At a party, when we were like 17.” 

Reggie and Alex both burst into laughter, and Luke glares at them. Willie is just standing there looking amused. 

“I can’t believe you never told me that, man,” Alex wheezes. “You and Bobby?” 

“Luke Patterson’s Smooch Club!” Reggie announces, and Alex laughs even harder. As if on cue, Julie chooses that moment to enter the kitchen as well, and his stupid friends crack up even more. Reggie points at her.

“Look, Alex, it’s another member!” 

Alex sounds like he’s dying. Julie frowns, looking amused, even though she doesn’t know what they’re cracking up about. 

“What am I a member of?” she asks, leaning on the kitchen island. 

“Luke Patterson’s Smooch Club,” Alex informs her. Julie blushes ever so slightly and Luke loves her for it. At least one of them has some decency left, he thinks. 

“It’s because he kissed amok around here,” Reggie explains, gripping the kitchen counter to keep himself upright. “No one is safe.” 

“Well,” Willie interjects, “He hasn’t kissed  _ me.” _

Luke knows he’s blushing, but he’s Luke Patterson, and he will not let his friends bully him into embarrassment. So he eyes Willie like he’s prey instead, an evil smirk forming on his lips. The look on Willie’s face reveals that he fully realises his mistake. But Luke is already stalking towards him. 

“Alex?” Willie says weakly, clearly asking for help, but Alex laughs and puts his hands up.

“You brought this upon yourself, dude.” 

Luke places a big smooch on Willie’s lips before pulling away and poking him in the side. 

“Welcome to your official membership,” he says, grinning stupidly. Willie stares at him with a blush on his cheeks. Alex laughs as he points at Willie’s face, and Reggie wraps his arms around Luke from behind in a rather possessive manner when he returns to him. 

“I can’t help that I got chemistry with everyone,” Luke says. Reggie kisses the side of his neck and Luke shivers.

“But you got the most with me,” Reggie announces, loud enough for everyone to hear.

Luke chuckles and turns around to kiss him on the lips. 

“Facts, babe.” 

When Flynn arrives at their house, she also receives a kiss, and Luke receives a slap from her in turn. It’s fair, really. Luke decides that he’s done kissing amok. He only really wants to kiss Reggie anyway. So he does just that, and Reggie kisses him back, and it’s still the best thing in the world. On par with playing music, probably. 

Luke loves Reggie so much, though. Really. And Luke loves that he hates award shows. 

\- The End? Nah. Not just yet. - 

  
  


_ Calm After the Storm _

by Sunset Curve 

written by Luke Patterson

_ It’s been a minute but  _

_ The boy on my mind is still the same  _

_ He swept into my life like hurricane  _

_ One night back then,  _

_ lifting me up and flinging me around  _

_ And now I wonder  _

_ How such a force of nature  _

_ can also be the calm after the storm _

_ He’s a paradox of the most beautiful kind  _

_ Devastation and butterflies, oh  _

_ Never been one to write love songs before  _

_ Never been of the romantic kind  _

_ But his storm woke me in the middle of the night  _

_ Thought I was losing my mind  _

_ A terrifyingly beautiful sight  _

_ The morning brought destruction  _

_ But his winds transformed into bright light  _

_ Guiding my way, chasing the demons _

_ Red flowers blooming after a harsh winter  _

_ The seasons changed but  _

_ The boy on my mind stayed the same  _

_ He knocked me off my feet like a crashing wave  _

_ Left me gasping for air,  _

_ falling, drowning, and sinking down  _

_ And now I wonder  _

_ How such a force of nature  _

_ can also be the fresh air in my lungs  _

_ He’s a paradox of the most beautiful kind  _

_ Roaring and soothing, oh  _

_ Never been one to write love songs before  _

_ Never been of the romantic kind  _

_ But his storm woke me in the middle of the night  _

_ Thought I was losing my mind  _

_ A terrifyingly beautiful sight  _

_ The morning brought destruction  _

_ But his winds transformed into bright light  _

_ Guiding my way, chasing the demons _

_ Red flowers blooming after a harsh winter  _

_ His storm has calmed  _

_ But the thrill remains _

_ I keep falling _

_ But he’s there to catch me  _

_ And now I wonder  _

_ How such a force of nature  _

_ can also be the calm after the storm _

+

_ October Night _

by Reggie Peters 

written by Reggie Peters 

_ Once I met a burning boy  _

_ Who made me feel like I could take on the world _

_ I shined brighter than I ever have before _

_ A dangerous game, _

_ and there was no way I could win  _

_ But his fire remained _

_ Melting the ice around my heart  _

_ And setting me free  _

_ I never saw him coming, never saw him leave  _

_ Never expected him to return, _

_ never believed he could be mine  _

_ And now I’m lying here on a fresh October night, _

_ counting the stars obstructed by pollution _

_ They’re much like me, _

_ Only shining through a haze  _

_ But my boy’s fire lit me up, _

_ pushed me through the fog _

_ And now I’m burning in his light, _

_ Never knew I could feel so bright _

_ Once I was a sinking stone  _

_ Sunk into the undiscovered depth of the ocean  _

_ But a guiding light pulled me up  _

_ Dragged me out of the dark  _

_ And warmed me by his fire  _

_ I played a dangerous game, _

_ But his fire remained _

_ Melting the ice around my heart  _

_ And setting me free _

_ And now I’m lying here on a fresh October night, _

_ counting the stars obstructed by pollution _

_ They’re much like me, _

_ Only shining through a haze  _

_ But my boy’s fire lit me up, _

_ pushed me through the fog _

_ And now I’m burning in his light, _

_ Never knew I could feel so bright _

_ I wonder how, _

_ I wonder why, _

_ This boy shared his fire with me  _

_ And instead of dousing it  _

_ It only seems to stir, _

_ Fan the flame, _

_ and make us burn together  _

_ On a fresh October night  _

  
  


\- This is really **The End** now. I Swear. - 

**Works inspired by this one:**

  * [I Hold With Those Who Favor Fire](https://archiveofourown.org/works/29519205) by [DaintyDuck_99](https://archiveofourown.org/users/DaintyDuck_99/pseuds/DaintyDuck_99)




End file.
